Darkness of the Heart
by Bad l'Cie
Summary: Lightning is a Shinra spy. On her first mission, she was required to find and bring back a five hundred year old plaque. Little does she know that the plaque spells danger for all that come in contact with her, especially the one named a hero...
1. Chapter 1

_I do not own FFVII or FFXIII_

Lightning stood in the lobby of the Shinra building with her pink hair up in a messy bun and wearing the same uniform as her colleges that worked behind the front desk. Suddenly, her earpiece buzzed to life.  
"Lightning? Come in." Rude said. Lightning placed her hand on the earpiece hiding beneath loose wisps of hair.  
"Agent Lightning here. Talk." She commanded before putting her hand down by her side.  
"The scientists can't decode the plaque you found in Wutai yesterday. Did you see how damaged it was before picking it up?" Rude asked. She placed her hand up to the earpiece again and sighed.  
"Yes. It was well preserved." She replied hastily and put her hand down by her side again when a few third class SOLDIERs walked past.  
"Well, it has been damaged because the letters are all disfigured." Rude said. Lightning raised her hand up to the ear piece again.  
"I'll meet you. Where are the scientists?" Lightning asked and wandered behind the desk and picked up her duffle before heading to the elevators.  
"Floor twenty one." Rude replied.  
"Roger." Lightning replied and boarded the empty elevator up to floor twenty one.

Lightning walked out of the elevator with her duffle over her shoulder, her hair was let out of the bun and she wore black skinny jeans, a black leather jacket and dark army boots. Her necklace sat over her grey tee, the Blazefire Pistol waited in its sheath that hung behind her and her shades covered her ice blue eyes. She strutted into the room and Reno straightened.  
"Rude, what's the problem?" Lightning asked and whipped off her sunglasses and dropped her duffle on the ground next to her. The bald Turk turned around to face her and gestured towards the plaque. The scientists stood around the bench, dumbfounded.  
"The plaque is damaged." Rude replied. Lightning looked down at the perfectly preserved plaque; there wasn't even a chip on the five hundred year old stone.  
"It's not damaged, Rude. You're just being ridiculous now." Lightning said.  
"Then how come the letters are disfigured?" Hojo asked the pink haired l'Cie.  
"It's not damaged. It's in a different language." She replied with an unamused scowl.  
"It's nothing we've ever seen before." Hollander said. She looked back down at the plaque and nodded.  
"But I grew up with it. It's in Cocoon script." Lightning replied.  
"Just tell us what it says, Farron!" Reno exclaimed. Lightning glared at Reno and Rude slapped the red headed Turk over the back of his head. Reno rubbed the back of his head as Lightning moved around to see the plaque clearly.

She scanned the letters once and then read through the inscription.  
"From the ashes and our ashes alone, she will rise. Ragnarok, the child of our fallen's fury. There will be one among us who will succumb to the darkness of the heart of Ragnarok. Through this one among many, Ragnarok will avenge us, all of us. Cocoon and Gran Pulse shall be avenged, through the blood, tears and the ultimate destruction of Gaia." Lightning recited and then stepped back from the bench.  
"This plaque was carved when Cocoon was falling into Gran Pulse... six months ago." Lightning replied.  
"No, this was dated to be five hundred years old." Hojo said.  
"No, five hundred years ago was the War of Transgression. The bloodthirsty battle between Cocoon and Gran Pulse. Ragnarok was supposed to have taken down Orphan, but only managed to shatter a segment of Cocoon's shell." Lightning replied, her mind turning to her l'Cie friends. Hollander turned to Hojo and they looked at each other in confusion.

Hollander then picked up a file and opened it.  
"When we found you in the slums of Midgar, your crystal was dated to be five hundred years old, meaning that when you turned to crystal, the plaque was carved." Hollander said and closed the file again.  
"If I'm five hundred and twenty-one years old in reality and Cocoon fell five hundred years ago, then, why is you're technology so far behind Cocoon's?" Lightning asked.  
"How advanced were you?" Hojo asked.  
"Machines had been running Cocoon and Gran Pulse since the dawn of time. Fal'Cie, the mechanical gods that ran everything and even created it. Well, my gunblade is an example and our cycles didn't touch the ground, they were airborne. This world is so primitive compared to Cocoon." Lightning replied.  
"We haven't even looked at developing that technology yet." Hojo said. Lightning ran her fingers through her hair and sighed. She stood at the window and looked out at the busy city below.

"Did you find any other crystals like me?" Lightning asked.  
"No, only shards of crystal looking to be carved like a human." Hollander replied.  
"Can I see them?" Lightning asked, on the verge of tears. It was too much for her to take, but she had to know which of her friends had died before even reaching Gaian soil.  
"Follow me." Rude said and Lightning silently followed him into the next room.  
"The scientists tried putting them together, but many pieces were missing." Rude explained and opened the door. Lightning wandered in and stopped dead. There were seven benches, each with blue pieces of crystal put into place, with indeed a few spaces missing. The little light that was in the room bounced off of the crystal pieces and projected onto the walls.

She walked up to the bench closest to the window and looked down at the assembled pieces. She recognised the face and sighed. It was the little boy, Dajh. On the bench next to Dajh, lay the shattered pieces of his father, Sazh's crystal. The bench next to Sazh had the remains of Snow's crystal strewn over it. The crystal that lay over the bench in front of Snow's was that of Hope. Lightning sighed as she looked to the bench next to his, the crystal of Vanille. Vanille's bench was next to Fang's. The crystal on the bench next to Fang's was that of Serah's.  
"Serah..." Lightning uttered with tears threatening to spill down her face at any given moment.  
"How did this happen?" Lightning asked and bowed her head.  
"I wish I had an explanation..." Lightning said and headed up to the window, looking out onto the busy city of Midgar.  
"From the ashes and our ashes alone, she will rise. Ragnarok, the child of our fallen's fury... I am now Ragnarok. I am the one that destroys Gaia, to avenge their deaths." Lightning said with realization and sighed with sorrow. Lightning left the room and slammed the door behind her.  
"Cocoon and Gran Pulse are no more..." Lightning said and headed back to the plaque.

"The plaque is a prophecy. And I have a funny feeling that it will come true..." Lightning said, fighting back her tears.  
"How is it a prophecy? It could just be an old fairytale." Hojo stated. Lightning approached the plaque and closed her eyes.  
"This was written by a fal'Cie, not a human. Only a fal'Cie can curse either a person, a planet or a multitude of the two. It seems to me that it was written by a Pulse fal'Cie. The Cocoon ones would have been inactive because their power source, the fal'Cie Orphan was taken out and Orphan was the only thing keeping Cocoon in the sky. I think it was Etro, the goddess of death. She made sure that at least one of the Pulse l'Cie was kept alive to avenge their fellow l'Cie. From the ashes and our ashes alone, he will rise. Meaning that when the planets disintegrated, it formed ash and that ash will fuel Ragnarok. Ragnarok, the child of our fallen's fury. The fallen being the l'Cie and the fal'Cie. There will be one among us who will succumb to the darkness of the heart of Ragnarok. It's one of you, one of the people of Gaia that will connect with Ragnarok. It can't be my people, I'm the only one left. Through this one among many, Ragnarok will avenge us, all of us. Cocoon and Gran Pulse shall be avenged, through the blood, tears and the ultimate destruction of Gaia. I think that is clear enough for you buffoons to figure out." Lightning explained. Hojo nodded.  
"Now I see... Thank you, Agent Farron." Hollander replied.  
"I better be getting back to the lobby." Lightning said and picked up her duffle before heading to the elevator, trying to mask her pain.


	2. Chapter 2

Lightning stood in the lobby, feeling more alone than she had ever felt in her life. There was a ruckus coming from upstairs around the elevators. She solemnly trudged up the stairs to see what was going on. Two of the first class SOLDIERs were arguing. Lightning slowly headed towards the fight.  
"Angeal! You never support me! Why do you always take Sephiroth's side in every argument? It drives me crazy!" Genesis exclaimed and shoved Angeal. Angeal huffed angrily and pushed Genesis back.  
"That's because you are so difficult to work with!" Angeal yelled in reply and poked Genesis in the chest.  
"Oh really? And Mr. Reads-a-lot is any easier to work with?" Genesis asked in reply. The auburn haired male threw a punch at the black haired man and it hit his jaw. Lightning quickened her pace and got into the middle of the fight. She held her hands out in front of their faces.  
"Stop it! You're supposed to be best friends!" Lightning hissed. The two SOLDIERs relaxed and took a deep breath.  
"You don't know when you're going to die. You don't know when your friends are going to die. You don't know when the world's going to end. But imagine if you had an argument with your best friend and then were killed on an assignment and the matter was never resolved. Imagine how you would feel. Now, tell each other how you would feel, knowing that the conflict would never be resolved." Lightning said and stepped back.  
"Angeal, I wouldn't cope. I couldn't bear it; it would feel like it was my entire fault." Genesis said.  
"It would be the same for me, Genesis. I hate leaving after we've had an argument. It feels like something bad is going to happen to either of us." Angeal replied.

Lightning smiled.  
"Now go on, I've got to clean up this mess you two caused." Lightning replied and shooed away the two SOLDIERs before putting the tables and chairs back into place. Lightning sighed as she returned back to the foot of the staircase. She watched Zack walking behind Angeal, asking him all sorts of questions about his training and laughed. It took her mind off of the fact that she was the only l'Cie left.  
"Claire, are you alright?" one of her workmates asked. Lightning shook her head and nodded.  
"Yeah, I'm fine." She replied.  
"Ok..." the woman mused unsurely before heading back towards the desk.  
"Lightning, Lazard wishes to see you." Tseng said. Lightning held the ear piece with her finger.  
"I'll be there." Lightning replied and picked her duffle up again before heading up to Lazard's office.

Lightning walked into Lazard's office and stood before his desk.  
"What's the situation, sir?" Lightning asked. Lazard adjusted his glasses and locked his hands together.  
"Lightning, I am sending Genesis and some other SOLDIERs into Wutai to end the war. I need you to get me the map of Fort Tamberlin." Lazard replied.  
"Easy. No problems." Lightning said and turned to walk out.  
"Lightning. I heard about the plaque. You believe that it is a prophecy, is that true?" Lazard asked. Lightning turned and sighed.  
"I don't believe, I know." Lightning replied and then walked out of the office, heading towards the helipad.

Reno hovered the helicopter over a clearing in the forest leading to the fort. Lightning stood at the edge of the copter, activated the anti-gravity device and jumped from the copter, landing swiftly on the ground. She stood up and ran into the forest.  
"Stay close Reno, I'll let you know when to come back to the clearing." Lightning said and ran to the edge of the forest. She hid from the Wutai soldiers in the shadows of the trees. She scanned the outside wall, looking for a chance to sneak in without being noticed. She activated the anti-gravity device again and ran up the wall before lying over the top of the wall. She looked down, scouting for soldiers and then slid down the wall. Lightning found the watchtower with ease and headed towards its entrance.

She hid behind the nearest wall and checked her surroundings. There were two soldiers guarding the door. Lightning pulled out her Blazefire Pistol and aimed for their necks. Her shots hit them exactly where she wanted them to and as soon they dropped to the floor, she ran to the door and held her Blazefire Pistol close. She stood back and kicked the door down. Lightning sauntered in and headed up the stairs as unnoticeable as a shadow in the night. Lightning snuck into the watch room and found three soldiers looking through binoculars. Lightning silently put her gunblade away and pulled out her survival knife. She crept up behind one of the Wuatians and slit his throat. The other two turned around and went for their weapons. Lightning flicked the knife back into her pocket and pulled her Blazefire Saber out in time to quickly dispatch one of them.

The other grabbed her waist and knocked her gunblade out of her hand.  
"What are you? You're not a SOLDIER, but you're not a Turk either..." he said and brushed the side of her cheek with his fingernail. Lightning pulled her face away from his hand and he grasped her waist tighter. Lightning said nothing.  
"Maybe they invented a new class of Shinra warrior... What are you?" he asked again.  
"That is classified information." Lightning replied.  
"Ah... a spy. The skill of a SOLDIER, the intelligence of a Turk. Right..." The man replied. Lightning managed to turn around in his arms and pushed him up against the wall.  
"I'm not supposed to tell anyone... but I guess I could make an exception..." Lightning said with a cheeky smile. She reached for her survival knife and poised it, ready to strike. Lightning bit the man's ear and he sighed with delight.  
"The reason why spies wear black is because it doesn't show stains." She whispered quietly and then nipped at his neck. Lightning brought the knife up to his neck and slit his neck before stabbing him in the chest and throwing his body across the room.

Lightning searched the papers lying on the tables. To her dismay, most of them were porn magazines. After searching through mountains of paper, she finally found the map. Lightning folded the map and shoved it into her pocket. Lightning raced down the stairs and over the outside wall. She jumped down onto the soil of the forest and sprinted into the safety of the trees.  
"Reno. I got the map." Lightning said and the helicopter showed up a moment later. Rude dropped a collapsible ladder to her and she climbed up, Rude pulled her into the copter and she sighed with relief.  
"That was quick." Reno said sarcastically.  
"Don't even start with me, Reno." Lightning replied sourly before Reno flew the copter towards the Shinra building.


	3. Chapter 3

Lightning pulled the map out of her pocket and pushed it onto Lazard's desk. Lazard looked up from the computer and studied the map closely. Lazard nodded and put the map back on his desk.  
"Very good, agent Farron. I was hesitant at first when the President wanted to use you in the company. You were perfect for SOLDIER, but unfortunately having only one female in the unit wasn't the best choice, but you were too familiar with warfare to be a Turk. But now, I feel he made the right choice making you a spy." Lazard said and gave the map to his assistant.  
"Make twenty-two copies of this map and give it to those preparing for the Wutai assignment." He instructed and the woman nodded before walking out of his office.  
"Oh and Lightning, Professor Hojo wishes to see you. He didn't specify why." Lazard said.  
"Is that all, sir?" Lightning asked.  
"Yes, you may leave." Lazard said with a nod.  
"Thank you sir." Lightning replied with a Sanctum salute and left his office.

Lightning stepped out of the elevator and Hojo greeted her with a nod.  
"You wanted to see me?" Lightning asked and stood before the crazed scientist with her hand on her hip. Hojo laughed and then put his files down.  
"Yes, I did. I'm intrigued by you, agent Lightning. You come from a highly evolved society and you know much about your world. What I want to know is; how would one 'succumb to the darkness of the heart of Ragnarok'?" Hojo asked.  
"I don't know that. But I guess that it would mean that you'd have to surrender your heart to Ragnarok and Ragnarok would surrender hers to you. Therefore, your heart becomes filled with Ragnarok's darkness. Metaphorically speaking, the one who falls for Ragnarok will be the one who will be able to summon Ragnarok to their will." Lightning replied, getting a little concerned that Hojo would figure out that she was Ragnarok.

Hojo hummed and nodded.  
"Interesting... There's one thing I would like to test on you. Don't worry, it won't kill you." Hojo said with a sinister smile. Lightning reached for her gunblade and rested her hand on the hilt.  
"You're taking this way too seriously..." Hojo said and pulled out a syringe filled with clear liquid.  
"No, I won't do it." Lightning replied and brought out her gunblade, preparing to attack at any moment.  
"Lightning, please don't be difficult..." Hojo scowled and grabbed her free wrist, pushing her sleeve up in the process. Lightning pulled her wrist away from the scientist and swung on him before retreating to the top of a table behind her. Lightning's heart beat faster as adrenaline rushed through her veins.  
"I'm not your lab monkey." Lightning hissed and swiftly switched to the Ravager paradigm before casting a web of thunder to bar his path. Hojo laughed.  
"Interesting, you can cast magic without the use of materia... you will make a very interesting sample." Hojo sneered at the l'Cie.

"I am not a test sample!" Lightning exclaimed. Lightning charged at the scientist and held her blade up to his neck.  
"Take the hint; if you perform any experiments on me, you're dead!" Lightning hissed. Hojo's breaths quickened as his body nervously produced sweat that poured down his forehead. He looked down at the needle in his hand and smirked.  
"Aren't you forgetting something, agent?" he asked with an evil twinkle in the whites of his eyes.  
"What?" She hissed at him. Hojo pushed the needle into her vein and injected the serum into her system.  
"The sedative, agent. That's what you forgot." Hojo mused in reply. Lightning's vision began to blur as her actions became sluggish.  
"That's it agent. Let your system shut down." Hojo said with a triumphant smirk.

Lightning stumbled, hitting her head against the desk as she fell. Pain rushed through her system slower as her breathing quickly slowed down. She tried to get back up, but her body wouldn't let her.  
"You should have said yes." Hojo replied with a shake of his head. Lightning's vision slowly blackened as her heavy eyelids drooped over her eyes. The bone chilling darkness of defeat slowly blanketed Lightning as her systems completely shut down. Hojo loomed over the l'Cie's body and smiled. He clicked his fingers and his assistant rushed to his side.  
"Leave her weapons and her devices out here." Hojo instructed and the assistant nodded. He took the anti-gravity unit off of her finger, removed her earpiece, picked up her survival knife and struggled to balance the Blazefire Saber over the pile. He placed the items on the table and then turned back to Hojo.

"What now?" the assistant asked with a shrug.  
"Pick her up and come with me." Hojo instructed. The assistant picked up the unconscious l'Cie and followed Hojo into a secret part of his lab. Hojo opened an armoured black box and picked out another syringe filled with green liquid spotted with blue.  
"Put her in the chair." Hojo instructed and flicked the glass to mix the solution together.  
"Sir, are you nuts? She already is powerful, but giving her Jenova cells will only heighten her power." The assistant said in reply. Hojo turned around and gave his assistant a death stare.  
"But by how much? That is what I wish to find out." Hojo replied with an evil smirk.

"Put her in the chair." Hojo instructed with a dark tone and the assistant nodded before placing Lightning into the chair and held her exposed wrist out. Hojo found her vein and pushed the needle into her wrist, injecting its contents into her body. He threw the needle out and picked up another.  
"Uh, how much are you using of the cell and mako solution?" the assistant asked worriedly. "The rest. Twelve entire syringes. I want to see her limitless potential exploited to its maximum." Hojo replied and continued to inject the Jenova cells and the mako into her body. After the final injection, Hojo smiled and nodded.  
"Now, put her in the tube." Hojo instructed. The assistant nodded and picked the l'Cie up again before placing her in the tube. He closed the door and filled the entire glass tube with mako.

Hojo stood before the glass and laughed.  
"At last, my research has something of note besides Sephiroth that is... Humph! I want to know what she knows. I want to know about these fal'Cie and l'Cie she spoke of. I want to know Ragnarok's power..." Hojo said with a smile.  
"Uh sir? Why would she tell you after what happened today?" His assistant asked.  
"I will only be watching and listening. For my next experiment, I want to see how Sephiroth and agent Lightning interact with each other. Then, maybe he could the information for me." Hojo replied with a nod.  
"You're nuts." The assistant uttered under his breath.


	4. Chapter 4

"Genesis, stay still. The apple will fall off otherwise." Angeal said to his auburn friend and brought a Shinra sword up to his own head and prepared to throw it like a dart to a board.  
"Your accuracy sucks! How I can I trust you with a dumbapple on my head?" Genesis asked with a nervous tone. Sephiroth laughed at the two Banorans.  
"Genesis, you won't die. Stop being a pussy." Sephiroth said. Genesis took a deep breath before Angeal threw the sword at the apple, cutting the top off. Sephiroth got up from the metal floor and picked up the apple parts. Genesis sighed with relief as his silver haired friend held up the parts of the apple for them to see.  
"Sorry, not quite the middle." Sephiroth said with a smile. Genesis picked up a new dumbapple and threw it to Sephiroth.  
"Genesis, try not to hack my head off this time..." Sephiroth said with a laugh before placing the apple on his head. Angeal sat away from his friends, admiring the sunset from atop the Junon cannon.

"I can't believe how real this sunset is..." Angeal commented to the mixture of purples, reds, yellows and blues all combining to produce a beautiful and captivating scene.  
"Angeal, it's a simulation." Genesis replied and held his red rapier up and smiled.  
"I will beat you this time!" Genesis exclaimed and flung his sword at the apple on his friend's head. Angeal picked up the pieces and shook his head.  
"Sorry, you did not much better than me." Angeal replied and held the apple up for the others to see. Sephiroth picked up Masamune and threw an apple in Angeal's direction.  
"I know what to do..." Angeal said and placed the apple on top of his head. Sephiroth raised Masamune, took aim and flung his blade at the apple. Angeal looked up to find the apple hanging above him, skewered by Sephiroth's sword.  
"Verdict?" Sephiroth asked and pulled his sword out of the apple. Angeal looked at it and smiled.  
"Perfect. Again." Angeal replied. Genesis playfully sneered at Sephiroth.  
"Why are you always getting it perfect?" Genesis asked in annoyance. Sephiroth laughed.  
"Years of practice..." Sephiroth replied with a smile. That smile quickly faded from his face as he remembered the gruelling training he had to do in order to get there.

Genesis sat down next to his dark haired friend and smiled.  
"How about we play a game?" Genesis asked with an evil smile.  
"Not the kind from that movie we watched last night!" Angeal exclaimed.  
"More like Genesis and I watched whilst you hid behind a pillow, high on sugar." Sephiroth replied, clearly unamused by Angeal's childish behaviour from the night before.  
"Yeah, the movie that you laughed through. I swear, I heard Genesis whimper once but you laughed the whole time." Angeal said to his silver haired companion. Sephiroth smiled and chuckled.  
"It was funny though..." he replied.  
"No, I was thinking a little truth or dare." Genesis said.  
"Genesis, we aren't schoolgirls." Sephiroth replied.  
"You might be." Angeal added with a laugh.  
"Watch it, Hewley..." Sephiroth scowled.  
"You know I was kidding!" Angeal exclaimed and playfully punched Sephiroth's arm.  
"Come on, we never actually get to do this sort of thing! It will be fun." Genesis said. Angeal nodded.  
"Yeah, it could be fun." Angeal agreed. The two first classes turned to their friend, whose arms were folded over his chest.  
"Sephiroth... please? It can be your way of saying sorry." Genesis said. Sephiroth sighed and nodded.  
"Alright." The hero replied as the memory of their play fight that went dramatically wrong. Genesis nodded and then the three SOLDIERs sat in a circle facing each other.  
"Seph, you start. Ask anybody." Genesis said with a smile.

"Genesis, truth or dare?" Sephiroth asked his auburn friend.  
"Truth." Genesis replied. Sephiroth thought for a moment and then smiled.  
"Would you ever turn gay for Angeal?" Sephiroth asked. Genesis looked at his childhood friend and then paled before turning red.  
"Yes, I would, but only if his life was at stake." Genesis replied before biting his lip, wishing that he'd never answered. Genesis turned to Angeal, cheeks still flushed.  
"Truth or dare?" Genesis asked.  
"Truth." Angeal replied with a nod.  
"Would you rather lick Hollander's feet or lose your honour?" Genesis asked.  
"Lick Hollander's feet." Angeal replied.  
"Angeal, that's disgusting." Sephiroth commented. Angeal shook his head and smiled.  
"At least I don't laugh during horror movies." Angeal replied. Sephiroth shrugged.  
"Whatever." He said, brushing off Angeal's reply.  
"Seph, truth or dare?" Angeal asked.  
"Truth." Sephiroth replied.  
"Oh, ok... if that new girl was in trouble, would you save her?" Angeal asked.  
"New girl? As in, Claire Farron in the lobby, new girl?" Sephiroth asked in return. Angeal nodded in reply.  
"Most definitely." Sephiroth replied with a smile.  
"Genesis, truth or dare?" Sephiroth asked.  
"Truth." Genesis replied.  
"What would you do with infinite power?" Sephiroth asked.  
"Easy, the world needs a new hero." Genesis replied with a cheeky smirk. Sephiroth sighed and rolled his eyes at his friend.  
"Angeal, truth or dare?" Genesis asked.  
"Truth." Angeal replied.  
"Would you ever tell a girl you like her through a text?" Genesis asked his dark haired friend.  
"No." Angeal replied with a smile.  
"Sephiroth, truth or dare?" Angeal asked.  
"Truth." Sephiroth replied.  
"Would you rather fall in love with a monster or have Zack rape you?" Angeal asked with a chuckle.  
"Depends, the monster might be my type." Sephiroth replied with a shrug.

"Ok, this is getting boring. From now on, we have to choose dare after a truth." Genesis said and the other two men nodded in agreement.  
"Genesis, I dare you to call the first number you see in your contacts and say, 'I rape behemoths, like a boss'." Sephiroth said. Genesis pouted before whipping out his phone. Genesis' face paled as he saw the first name on his contacts list, Hollander. Angeal looked over at Genesis' phone and laughed. Genesis took a deep breath before calling the number and waiting for Hollander to answer.  
"Hello?" Hollander asked.  
"I rape behemoths, like a boss." Genesis said and Hollander screamed into the speaker. Genesis hung up and put his phone away. Sephiroth and Angeal laughed at their paled friend. Genesis turned to Angeal and smiled wickedly.  
"Angeal, I dare you to kiss me." Genesis said. Angeal went a bright shade of red. A sudden air of awkwardness hung over the three SOLDER operatives. Angeal took a deep breath and leaned towards his friend's lips. He gently pressed his lips up against Genesis' and supported his red haired friend's neck with his hand. Their lips continuously locked and unlocked as Angeal slowly worked his tongue into Genesis' mouth. Sephiroth couldn't believe his eyes. His best friends were locking lips right in front of him. Angeal slowly pulled his lips off of Genesis, who sighed happily.  
"Not bad, Hewley. Not bad at all..." Genesis replied with a smile. Angeal shrugged.  
"I try." He said.  
"I can't believe you two kissed." Sephiroth stated with a shocked expression.

"Sephiroth, I dare you to sneak into Hojo's lab, steal his porn magazines and bring them back here. We will read them and then you will return them without getting caught. Should be easy enough for the SOLDIER hero, right?" Angeal asked.  
"If Hojo has porn mags in his lab, I'm sure I could find them." Sephiroth replied.  
"Good, then go." Genesis said and clapped his hands together. Sephiroth exited the training room and wandered down the hall towards the elevators. The elevator stopped in Hojo's lab and Sephiroth stayed low, trying not to be noticed by the crazed scientist. He hid behind a desk and looked out to see if anyone was around. As soon as he saw Hojo, he hid behind the desk again and listened for Hojo's footsteps, indicating his departure of the lab.  
"Uh sir? Why would she tell you after what happened today?" His assistant asked.  
"I will only be watching and listening. For my next experiment, I want to see how Sephiroth and agent Lightning interact with each other. Then, maybe he could the information for me." Hojo replied with a nod.  
"You're nuts." The assistant uttered under his breath. Sephiroth was confused with those few snippets of the conversation he heard.  
"Who's agent Lightning?" Sephiroth asked himself silently.  
"I'm not nuts, I'm a genius." Hojo replied. Two sets of footsteps headed for the elevators and Sephiroth hid underneath Hojo's desk as they left the lab.

Sephiroth crawled out from underneath the desk and shuffled through Hojo's papers. He laughed victoriously as he pulled out three porn mags that Hojo had kept in his top left drawer. The elevator dinged and Sephiroth hid back underneath the desk. Two sets of footsteps re-entered the lab and headed away from the desk. Sephiroth slowly crept across the ground and took the stairs up to the next floor, where he took the elevator up to the SOLDIER floor. Sephiroth wandered back into the training room with a pile of magazines under his arm.  
"Guess what I got?" Sephiroth asked with a smile.  
"Just put them down, Seph." Angeal replied and Sephiroth placed the mags down before sitting next to his friends. Genesis and Angeal picked up a magazine each as Sephiroth thought about what Hojo had said.  
"Hey guys, have you heard of an agent Lightning working for Shinra?" Sephiroth asked. Genesis and Angeal paid Sephiroth no attention as they gawked at naked women for over two hours.

"Can I take them back now?" Sephiroth asked as they placed the mags back on the pile with the rest.  
"Yes, go and don't get caught." Angeal replied and Sephiroth picked up the magazines before sneaking back into Hojo's lab. Sephiroth placed the magazines back into the top left drawer. Hojo walked back into the room with his assistant trailing and Sephiroth ducked underneath the desk again.  
"Agent Lightning must be awakened. Nobody must know what we have done to her. Understood?" Hojo asked.  
"Yes sir." The assistant replied. Sephiroth looked up from behind the desk to try and see who this agent Lightning was. The assistant fell after a second and a flurry of thunder attacked Hojo.  
"What did you do to me you bastard?" Lightning hissed as she held her Blazefire Pistol at Hojo's head.  
"I enhanced you. You are now stronger than ever thanks to the Jenova cells and mako running through your system. You should be thanking me." Hojo replied. Lightning put her Blazefire Pistol down and punched Hojo in the face.  
"Great! That's just great! I'm even more of a monster than before!" Lightning exclaimed with a tone only found in the roar thunder.  
"For your information, l'Cie weren't even considered human. They're half Cie'th, half human." Lightning hissed before storming towards her items and put them away before flouncing out of the room.

Sephiroth crept after her, to avoid being detected by the scientists and followed the spy down the hall. She stopped dead and turned to face the SOLDIER following her down that hall.  
"What?" she hissed.  
"Are you ok?" Sephiroth asked.  
"Do I look ok to you?" She asked in reply, turning fully to reveal her identity.  
"Are you Claire Farron, the new girl working downstairs?" Sephiroth asked.  
"Yes. What of it?" Lightning hissed in reply.  
"Why are they calling you agent Lightning?" Sephiroth asked.  
"You're full of questions, aren't you? And the job down in the lobby is a cover. You figure out the rest. I'm sure it wouldn't be hard as you have one of the highest IQs of the SOLDIER operatives besides Genesis." Lightning replied with a sour tone and turned on her heels before walking down the hall. More questions flooded Sephiroth's mind as he turned away from the moody spy and headed back to his friends.


	5. Chapter 5

Lightning threw a vase across her bedroom before sitting on her bed and sighing. "Fucking Hojo..." Lightning cursed as she got up and cleared up the broken porcelain. "I swear I'm going to murder him later..." Lightning uttered as she disposed of the broken vase. She sat back down onto her bed and studied the message on the plaque a little more. She looked at the sheet of paper scrawled with Cocoon script and tried to find another meaning. "From the ashes and our ashes alone, she will rise. Ragnarok, the child of our fallen's fury. There will be one among us who will succumb to the darkness of the heart of Ragnarok. Through this one among many, Ragnarok will avenge us, all of us. Cocoon and Gran Pulse shall be avenged, through the blood, tears and the ultimate destruction of Gaia. Shit!" Lightning exclaimed and crumpled up the paper before throwing it at her door. She ran her hands through her hair before sighing in frustration. "I better get some sleep..." she uttered and laid her head against the pillow. She turned off the bedside lamp and stared aimlessly at the darkness that surrounded her. Soon, her eyelids became too heavy and she let them close.

She opened her eyes to find Serah, Fang, Vanille, Hope, Snow Sazh and Dajh staring at her. The surrounding was a bright mako green and the air was bone chillingly cold, almost as if there was a strong spiritual presence there. "Wake up, Lightning!" Serah chirped happily. The chocobo in Sazh's afro jumped out and peeped before flying down to Dajh's hands. Fang grabbed Lightning's hand and pulled her up. "You seem down. What's up sis?" Snow asked and slapped Lightning on the back. "I'm not your sister, damn it!" Lightning exclaimed. Hope gasped and stepped back from the confused spy. "What's going on here?" Lightning asked with a frenzied tone. The other l'Cie were silent. "I said, what's going on here?" Lightning asked again. The silence that followed was thicker than steel.

"Barthandelus, explain." Vanille replied. Lightning turned to find Galenth Dysley standing beside Cid Raines. "We're dead. Valhalla was destroyed in the process, so our souls came to the Lifestream. The question is, what are you doing here?" Galenth answered. "That's what I want to know." Lightning replied. "Wasn't there some sort of prophecy Galenth?" Cid asked the fal'Cie in return. Lightning gasped silently, as the inscription on the plaque entered her mind. "From the ashes and our ashes alone, she will rise. Ragnarok, the child of our fallen's fury. There will be one among us who will succumb to the darkness of the heart of Ragnarok..." Lightning said, drifting into thought. "Through this one among many, Ragnarok will avenge us, all of us. Cocoon and Gran Pulse shall be avenged, through the blood, tears and the ultimate destruction of Gaia." Galenth finished and nodded. "That's the one." Cid replied.

"Wait, shouldn't Fang have been the one to stay alive, she was Ragnarok three times. Or Vanille? They were originally given the Focus to do that task." Sazh said. "That would make sense." Hope agreed. "Nobody knows what went through Etro's mind then. All we know is that when Gaia is destroyed, Cocoon and Gran Pulse will be reincarnated." Galenth replied. "So, Etro's given a moody ex soldier the honour of destroying a world to restore our own?" Snow asked. "Pretty much." Fang replied. "But why me?" Lightning asked. "I have a feeling I know why." Serah replied and held onto Snow's arm. Dajh smiled innocently and laughed. "That tickles!" he exclaimed as the chocobo tried to burry into his afro.

"Why? Why would anyone trust her with the power of Ragnarok?" Fang asked. Lightning gave Fang a death stare before sarcastically laughing. "Very funny." Lightning said with a snarl. "Because, she is the only one capable of connecting to the Chosen One." Galenth replied. "Who's the Chosen One?" Vanille asked and put her hands up before shrugging. "A Gaian who has been tasked with falling for Ragnarok. To romantically connect with Ragnarok is to succumb to the darkness of the heart of Ragnarok." Cid replied. "I was right?" Lighting uttered in confusion. "Daddy! I see three men in a room!" Dajh exclaimed and pointed to two men talking with each other and one standing by himself. They rushed over to see what Dajh was talking about.

"Lightning? Do you know them?" Serah asked. "Yes. First class SOLDIER operatives." Lightning replied. Galenth looked closer at them and tried to make out their features. "They seem familiar... I don't know why..." He said. "The red haired one is Genesis Rhapsodos. The black haired one is Angeal Hewley. And the silver haired one is Sephiroth Crescent." Lightning replied. They all turned to stare at the Shinra spy. "What? It's my job to dig up files." Lightning replied with a shrug. "Galenth, do you know why they seem familiar to you?" Lightning asked. The fal'Cie shook his head. "I have not the slightest clue." Galenth replied. Lightning sighed.

"So, does this mean that the prophecy is my new Focus?" Lightning asked. "Yes, but no. Yes, because you are the only l'Cie left living. No, because you won't turn into a Cie'th if you don't complete it." Galenth replied. "So, if Lightning doesn't want to destroy Gaia and the prophecy never comes true, nothing happens?" Vanille asked to clarify. Cid shook his head. "Pretty much. But, she will have to fall in love sometime." Cid replied. Snow scoffed. "I don't think Light has a romantic bone in her body!" Snow said with a laugh. Lightning walked up to Snow and raised her eyebrow in challenge. She threw a punch at him, but it went straight through his face. "Missed me, this time." Snow said with a smirk. "Fuck you." Lightning said with a snarl and Serah shook her head at the squabbling l'Cie.

"Will you two please stop fighting?" Serah asked. Lightning huffed and crossed her arms before turning away from Snow. Snow chuckled before wrapping his arm around Serah's waist and kissing her cheek. "I agree with Serah. I don't appreciate you swearing in front of Dajh." Sazh replied and Dajh was sounding out the word before giggling, enjoying the way it felt against his teeth to say it. "Dajh, don't say that. Only dirty mouthed soldiers say that." Serah said with a cheeky smile. Dajh nodded. "Ok." He replied with a smile. "Great. Not only am I a monster, or a science experiment, but a dirty mouthed soldier. Thank you for stereotyping soldiers Serah." Lightning said sourly before rolling her eyes at her younger sister. "Sorry." Serah replied with a smirk. Suddenly, an annoying beeping battered Lightning's ears.

Her eyes slowly opened. She looked at her alarm clock and sighed. Lightning bashed the clock in order for it to be silent and then got up in order to get ready for another day at the Shinra building.


	6. Chapter 6

"We'll this is goodbye for now." Genesis said with sad nod. His two friends nodded in reply.  
"Stay out of trouble." Angeal said with a forlorn smile.  
"I'll try." Genesis replied with a laugh and turned to join the other seconds and thirds leaving for Fort Tamberlin. Lightning crossed her arms and watched the SOLDIERs leave. Angeal and Sephiroth left for the SOLDIER floor. Lightning's ear piece buzzed to life.  
"Lightning, Lazard wants to see you. It was something about Hojo, I think." Reno said.  
"Roger. I'll be there." Lightning replied and headed up to Lazard's office with her duffle under her shoulder.

Sephiroth slumped against the wall and Lazard was sitting at his desk patiently when Lightning walked in.  
"Agent Lightning." Lazard said with a nod.  
"You wanted to see me, sir?" Lightning asked.  
"Yes... It's about last night. Hojo told me that you waltzed in and threatened to kill him. Is that true?" Lazard asked. Lightning shook her head.  
"He performed an experiment on me against my will. Of course I threatened him." Lightning replied.  
"That's not what Hojo said." Lazard said.  
"Hojo is a walking mass of complexes. It's like him to bend the truth. I was there when she attacked him. He said, 'Agent Lightning must be awakened. Nobody must know what we have done to her.' Evidence enough?" Sephiroth asked.  
"And what were you doing in Hojo's office late last night, Sephiroth?" Lazard asked in reply. The SOLDIER hero stayed silent and casually looked back down at the ground.  
"Regardless of why Sephiroth was in the lab, I have a witness to support my case." Lightning replied.  
"So does Hojo." Lazard countered with a sigh.  
"Lightning, you are one of our best. But I'm afraid that assaulting a member of staff for no reason will result in you losing your job." Lazard said and rubbed his temples.  
"But I had a reason. Self-defence, anger. They're my reasons." Lightning replied.

Suddenly, Hojo's assistant barged through the doors with a file in his hands.  
"What agent Lightning says is true." He said and placed the files on Lazard's desk.  
"What are these?" Lazard asked in frustration.  
"Long story short, he injected twelve syringes filled with mako and Jenova cells, wanting to find out how powerful she could be." The assistant replied.  
"He knows too much..." Lightning uttered under her breath.  
"He also knew that she wouldn't tell him the secret of the plaque, so he wanted Sephiroth to get it out of her at a later date." The assistant replied. Lightning turned to Sephiroth and shook her head at him.  
"You traitor!" Lightning hissed.  
"I only heard him say that. He never told me to do that to my face." Sephiroth retorted.  
"Oh yeah?" Lightning asked with a scowl and crossed her arms in front of her chest.  
"Agent, he didn't say anything to Sephiroth about the plaque as far as I know." The assistant replied. Lightning put her arms by her side and turned to Lazard, who had is nose into the files.  
"Yes, Lightning was telling the truth." Lazard said with a nod and handed the files back to the assistant, who nodded and then left.  
"I'm sorry for accusing you." Lazard said.  
"It's alright." Lightning replied.

"Anyways, we have reports of four more plaques hidden all over Gaia. The scientists are hoping that they will shed some light on the first plaque. Would you be willing to look for them?" Lazard asked.  
"Yeah. No problems." Lightning replied with a nod.  
"The first plaque foretold of Gaia's destruction by a beast named Ragnarok. These plaques are now top priority. Would you be willing to look for the plaques with Sephiroth by your side?" Lazard asked and gestured to the SOLDIER leaning up against the wall.  
"He better not slow me down." Lightning replied.  
"Me? Slow you down? Just don't my way and we won't have a problem." Sephiroth retorted, secretly hiding a smile.  
"Ok then. Intel tells us that one is residing in Costa del Sol. How soon can you leave?" Lazard asked.  
"Immediately." Lightning and Sephiroth said in unison before turning to glare at each other. Lightning reached for her earpiece.  
"Reno? Do you hear me?" Lightning asked.  
"Clear as crystal. Whatcha need?" Reno asked in reply.  
"Start up the chopper, Sephiroth and I will meet you on the helipad in ten minutes." Lightning replied and then strutted out of the room.

"What is she?" Sephiroth asked.  
"Perfect for SOLDIER, but there's the gender problem. Quite good for a Turk, but she's too accustomed to the art of warfare. A mix of both. A spy." Lazard replied. Sephiroth got off of the wall and stood before Lazard's desk.  
"I see. How come we never knew that Shinra had a spy?" Sephiroth asked.  
"She must be doing her job right if nobody else but the Turks and myself knew." Lazard replied with a nod and a smile. Lightning stood in the doorway with her arms crossed.  
"I can leave without you. You coming or what?" She asked and left the doorway. Sephiroth laughed.  
"This will be interesting." He replied and trailed after the spy.

People flocked towards the spy and the SOLDIER hero as soon as they touched the sand of Costa del Sol.  
"People and their love of celebrities..." Lightning chuckled.  
"I'm used to it." Sephiroth replied with a shrug.  
"Remember, we are here on a mission. Not to take pictures with fans and sign autographs. Got it?" Lightning asked.  
"I know. I'm not some newbie third class." Sephiroth replied. Lightning looked around and sighed. She didn't want to admit it, but Costa del Sol was making her homesick.  
"We better find it soon." Lightning said and then walked due east. Sephiroth rolled his eyes at the spy and followed her down the water's edge.

"Where are you from?" Sephiroth asked. Lightning stopped dead and then looked down at the sand below her feet before sighing.  
"Bodhum." Lightning replied and then continued walking.  
"I've never heard of a town in Gaia called Bodhum." Sephiroth said. Lightning stopped again and closed her eyes. The cool sea breeze gently touched her face as she smelt the sweet scent of salt and sand. When she opened her eyes, the buildings of Bodhum surrounded her. The pier sat north of where she stood, with the NORA beach house to the south of her current position. The fireworks dome sat patiently on the water as the Pulse Vestige loomed over the beach town. She smiled as she felt the warmth of the fal'Cie Phoenix on her face. On the footsteps of the beach house was Serah, Snow, Lebreau, Maqui, Gadot and Yuj, chatting away as they always had on beautiful sunny days. Children played in the waves as Amodar watched on, enjoying the sunshine as there wasn't much need for the security regiment in a town as quiet as this.

"Lightning?" Sephiroth asked and Bodhum melted away, revealing the sunny beach of Costa del Sol.  
"It's a beach town on Cocoon." Lightning replied sadly and then walked along the coast. Sephiroth followed the l'Cie and they soon came across a statue. The statue consisted of a figure and a plaque, both made from the precious rocks found in Mah'habara. The figure was a man clad in armour, wielding an 'S' shaped blade. If he was without his sword, his gaze probable would have split a person in half.  
"Who's this?" Sephiroth asked. Lightning touched her brand and looked up at the figure.  
"It's Odin." Lightning replied with a smile. She knelt down and tried to interpret the glyphs. Lightning brushed away the sand from the writing and nodded.  
"Found the plaque." She stated. Sephiroth looked down at the plaque and then to the l'Cie in confusion.  
"I can't read it." He said.  
"That's because it's written in Cocoon script." Lightning replied with an eyebrow raised and then turned back to the plaque.

"What does it say?" Sephiroth asked.  
"Ragnarok is incomplete. Complete the beast in order to destroy Gaia. There are four tasks. Chosen of Odin, Rose of Thunder, your first task is to find your lover. Find the one that succumbs to the heart of Ragnarok." Lightning recited. She took out her phone and took a picture of the plaque and then put it back in her pocket.  
"Move." Sephiroth commanded.  
"What?" Lightning asked. Sephiroth knelt down next to the l'Cie and gently pulled the plaque off of the statue.  
"Are you insane? You could have broken it!" Lightning hissed and took the plaque out of his hands.  
"Feisty, aren't you?" Sephiroth asked with a laugh. She shook her head at him and stood up.  
"What did the first one say anyways?" Sephiroth asked.  
"From the ashes and our ashes alone, she will rise. Ragnarok, the child of our fallen's fury. There will be one among us who will succumb to the darkness of the heart of Ragnarok. Through this one among many, Ragnarok will avenge us, all of us. Cocoon and Gran Pulse shall be avenged, through the blood, tears and the ultimate destruction of Gaia." Lightning replied.

Suddenly, Lightning's earpiece buzzed to life and Tseng's voice spoke through the tiny speaker.  
"Lightning. The SOLDIERs on the Wutai mission went missing. We sent Angeal to find them, but we've lost contact. Monsters with Angeal's face and copies of Genesis are running amok in Midgar. Don't worry, we've got it under control. Just letting you know."  
"Thanks Tseng." Lightning replied and then turned to the SOLDIER hero.  
"That was Tseng. Genesis and Angeal went missing. I know you were close to them... I'm sorry." Lightning said. Sephiroth didn't seem to show a change of mood, but his eyes were a dead giveaway. They didn't retain their usual sparkle, his cat like eyes were rather dull and lifeless instead. He turned away from the l'Cie and stared at the sun's rays reflecting off of the sea.

Lightning wandered over to Sephiroth and stood next to him before sighing.  
"I know what it's like to lose those who are close to you." Lightning said.  
"How would you know?" Sephiroth asked and folded his arms across his chest.  
"My father died when I was young and my mother died when I was fifteen. There was no family we could turn to, so I had to raise my younger sister by myself. I am the only one who survived Cocoon and Gran Pulse's decimation... I lost everybody. My friends, my sister, my mentors... Everybody. It gets really lonely you know... no one else knows what you're going through; sometimes I don't even know myself. I just wish that someone would've survived with me... but that's impossible. I know that now." Lightning replied and then turned to Sephiroth.  
"We all experience grief in our lives, sometime or another. It's part of life, a part that we cannot ignore. But without grief, we could never know happiness. If losing somebody really hurts, then they truly meant something in your life. Get what I'm saying?" Lightning asked.  
"Not entirely." Sephiroth replied blankly.  
"I'm saying that you were lucky to meet them. You wouldn't have felt this way otherwise." Lightning explained and then watched the waves gradually crept closer to them. Sephiroth stayed silent as the sun slowly began to set.

Sephiroth looked at Lightning and sighed. The absence of emotion in her ice blue eyes hinted at the great pain that reminiscing her past brought her. Sephiroth placed his hand on her shoulder and pulled her closer to his side. Lightning rested her head on his shoulder and smiled softly. Sephiroth's hand moved from her shoulder, to her cheek. He gently moved her face towards hers and pressed his lips up against hers. Lightning didn't object and ran her fingers through his silvery hair. Their lips continuously locked and unlocked as their embrace tightened. Sephiroth rested his hands on her lower back as her hands locked around his neck. Lightning gently nipped at Sephiroth's lower lip and he sighed with pleasure. Their kiss slowly turned fervent their tongues began to make contact. Their lips parted and Lightning pressed her lips against his. As their lips caressed again, Lightning's fingers slowly massaged his scalp. Sephiroth's hands moved up her back and gently rubbed the sides of her breasts. Their lips pulled away again and they chuckled softly.

Suddenly, Lightning broke free of Sephiroth's grip.  
"What am I doing?" Lightning asked herself and walked away from the SOLDIER hero before taking a deep breath. Sephiroth walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist before kissing her neck. Sephiroth gently bit her neck in between his kisses.  
"Oh Sephiroth..." Lightning sighed as his tongue brushed her skin. Lightning shook her head and broken out of Sephiroth's grip.  
"Don't you like me?" Sephiroth asked; a subtle hint of hurt lingering in his voice.  
"I do, but I can't love anybody." Lightning replied.  
"Why not?" Sephiroth asked.  
"Let's just say that if I were to fall in love, it would be a matter of life and death." Lightning replied with a sigh.  
"If you don't like me, just say so." Sephiroth said.  
"I really do... but, how do I put this? How would you feel about loving a monster, powerful enough to destroy Gaia with one blow?" Lightning asked.  
"I can look past that because I'm in love with you." Sephiroth replied.  
"I'm sorry, I don't think we can be together. It's too risky, I don't know how to control it." Lightning said.  
"I understand..." Sephiroth said with a sad smile.  
"Yo, Farron? You and the general done yet?" Reno asked.  
"Yes Reno. Take us back." Lightning replied and the two of them headed back to the hovering chopper.


	7. Chapter 7

"Good work. I knew I could count on you two. But, your search doesn't stop here. There are still three more to find. Onto other news, we lost a few people today at the Nibelheim reactor. I want you two to check it out. I'll be sending Zack and a few infantrymen with you for support." Lazard explained.  
"We'll be fine. We don't need support." Sephiroth said. Lazard shook his head at the first class SOLDIER.  
"That's not the case. Besides, there have been sightings of a statue at the reactor that was never there before. I want you two to check it out." Lazard replied. Zack wandered in the office with a spiky blonde haired infantryman by his side.  
"You called for us?" Zack asked. Sephiroth's mood soured as he saw Zack wielding Angeal's buster sword. Even though the hero knew that Angeal would've given it to him anyways, Sephiroth had a funny feeling that Angeal was no longer in Gaia. Lightning saw his face and gently wove her fingertips in between his before giving his hand a soft squeeze. Sephiroth turned to the pink haired spy and she gave him a reassuring smile.

"Right. You four are heading to Nibelheim as soon as possible. Am I clear?" Lazard asked.  
"Yes sir." Lightning and Sephiroth said in sync before turning to each other and exchanging brief chuckles.  
"Good, then you two prepare whilst I explain their role." Lazard said and gestured to the two who had just walked in. Lightning and Sephiroth left the office and Sephiroth turned in the way of the file room.  
"Where are you going?" Lightning asked in a hushed tone.  
"File room." Sephiroth replied with a whisper. Lightning followed Sephiroth to the file room and watched as he placed his phone in the box outside the door before going in. Lightning sighed and placed her phone in the box too before following the silver haired SOLDIER inside.

The room had two bookshelves that were completely filled with books and they reached towards the heavens. Among the many file cabinets cluttering the large room, was Sephiroth sitting down at a table, reading a book. Lightning sighed and then sat next to him.  
"What are you reading?" Lightning asked and tried to look over at the writing. Sephiroth turned to look at her, his green cat eyes meeting her ice blue.  
"For your information, I am looking up this 'Cocoon' you spoke of." Sephiroth replied.  
"You won't find much. All that Gaia knows about Cocoon and Gran Pulse is that one is supremely advanced in technology and the other is a primitive world. That and the beast that broke the shell of Cocoon during the War of Transgression, is here, living among the Gaian society, waiting for her chance to destroy it all, just to avenge the destruction of Cocoon and Gran Pulse." Lightning replied.  
"You know a lot about Ragnarok's intentions... that intrigues me. What connection do you have with the beast?" Sephiroth asked.  
"I was afraid you were going to ask that." Lightning replied and then went over to the bookshelf. She picked out a book and brought it back over to the table. She sat down and set it down in front of her. She opened the book and it told of Pulsian folklore, in Gran Pulse script of course. She opened it up on the page describing Ragnarok.

"Ragnarok is the beast summoned forth in the ones tasked with destroying Cocoon through wrath. The Fated Ones, being my friends Fang and Vanille, were tasked with taking out Cocoon during the War of Transgression. However, they were turned to crystal so the only damage Fang did was to the outside. Five hundred years later, they were awoken. Fang had forgotten everything, Vanille pretended to have forgotten her Focus too. She didn't want to destroy Cocoon, she was afraid of Ragnarok, of herself. They headed off in search of their Focus and the fal'Cie that branded them wasn't happy. So, when my sister wandered in, she was branded a l'Cie and given their Focus. Somehow, five of us ended up in the Pulse Vestige. Serah turned to crystal and the fal'Cie gave us the same Focus. We later ran into Fang and together we took down Orphan, the fal'Cie responsible for holding Cocoon in the sky. Cocoon fell and Ragnarok couldn't hold Cocoon up. The two planets collided. Because we completed our Focus, we turned to crystal. However, when our crystals ended up here, mine was the only one that didn't break. Because the crystal broke, the l'Cie sleeping in it died. But here, that event happened five hundred years ago. So, I'm as old as I say I am. And I'm a monster. I'm Ragnarok. I'm the one tasked with destroying Gaia with a man by my side. Destroying everything... I can't do it. I can take people's lives sure, that's not a problem... but destroying a planet? I don't think I can do it." Lightning explained.

Sephiroth studied the glyphs and the picture of Ragnarok before looking back at Lightning, who buried her face in her hands.  
"I didn't think that you believed in fairytales." Sephiroth said.  
"It changes you when you become one yourself. Trust me on that." Lightning replied sadly. She gave him a hopeless smile before looking back at the book.  
"Listen, I don't want you to get mixed up in this. I don't want you to carry the burden I do, no one deserves that, especially you." Lightning said.  
"Lightning?" Sephiroth asked the l'Cie.  
"Yes?" She asked in response. Sephiroth pressed his lips up against hers and intertwined his fingers with hers. Lightning's surprise quickly blended into pleasure as each moment passed. Their lips parted and Lightning looked at Sephiroth in confusion.  
"I don't get it... How can you kiss me after learning the truth?" Lightning asked. Sephiroth sighed and kissed her cheek.  
"Because ever since your first day working here, I've been in love with you. I don't care if you're a monster... nothing is going to sway me." Sephiroth replied.  
"But, if you do love me as you say you do, you will be the one that tells me to destroy Gaia. Can you handle that?" Lightning asked.  
"Yes. I'll do anything for you." Sephiroth replied with a smile and kissed her cheek before briefly kissing Lightning's lips.

Suddenly, Lightning's earpiece buzzed to life.  
"Where are you? Lazard wants you guys to leave now!" Reno exclaimed.  
"We're on our way." Lightning replied and pulled the SOLDIER hero out of his chair before leading him outside. They picked up their phones and then met Reno, Zack and the blonde spiky haired infantryman at the helipad.


	8. Chapter 8

The four of them walked into the dusty town of Nibelheim.  
"Cloud, you're home now. Take the bloody helmet off." Zack said to his spiky haired friend. The blonde shook his head in protest. Zack sighed with defeat and stopped at the inn. The man named Cloud followed him closely as Sephiroth and Lightning took their time getting to the inn. A brown haired girl dressed as a cowgirl wandered over to the four and tipped her hat to them.  
"Welcome to Nibelheim! I'm Tifa Lockhart and I will be showing you around Mount Nibel for the next few days. I'll see you tomorrow!" She exclaimed and then skipped off to join a group of girls her age.  
"Ok!" Zack called after the bubbly young woman.

Sephiroth led the others into the inn and stared out the second floor window. Zack wandered up the staircase to find Sephiroth blankly staring out the window. "Lightning, what is he doing?" Zack asked the pink haired spy who leant against the wall next to Sephiroth.  
"Beats me." Lightning replied and then turned to Sephiroth with a concerned expression.  
"Sephiroth? Are you alright?" Zack asked.  
"Strange... Nibelheim seems so familiar... I have no idea why, but it does..." Sephiroth replied and turned to Lightning.  
"I'm fine. Don't worry about me. We've got a lot to get through tomorrow, we better get some sleep." Sephiroth said and then wandered into the room furthest away from the stairs.  
"I'll go see what's bothering him. Don't worry about him. He'll be fine." Lightning replied. Zack followed Cloud into the room next door and Lightning sighed before wandering into the room after Sephiroth.

"You seem troubled... What's up?" Lightning asked. Sephiroth took off his coat and threw it onto the edge of his bed.  
"I don't know... I think I'm going crazy..." Sephiroth replied and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. Lightning removed the suspenders from his belt and ran her hands down his torso.  
"I just think you're tired. But you're too proud to admit it." Lightning said with a smile and kissed Sephiroth's cheek.  
"Maybe you're right. I haven't had enough sleep in ages." Sephiroth replied. Lightning chuckled as she ran her fingers through his silky silver hair.  
"Then, maybe you should get some proper sleep tonight. You won't be calling yourself crazy after a good night's sleep." Lightning said and briefly pressed her lips up against his before pulling away again.  
"Your kisses are amazing." Sephiroth said and kissed her again.  
"You are amazing." Lightning replied and wrapped her arms around him before kissing his neck.  
"I love you." Lightning cooed.  
"I love you too." Sephiroth replied and kissed her cheek.

Lightning released her grip on him and sat on her own bed next to his. The neutral colours of the room really set off just how desert like Nibelheim was. Sephiroth lay on his back and stared at the ceiling. Lightning got off of her bed and sat on his. She softly traced her finger down his perfectly toned body.  
"Look at you..." Lightning mused and chuckled. Sephiroth took her left hand and ran his lips down her ring finger. Lightning sighed with content and chuckled as Sephiroth slowly tried to work her leather jacket off of her body. Lightning whipped her jacket off and threw it against the back wall. She sat on his stomach and caught his bottom lip in between her own lips. Lightning nipped at his lower lip as his hands rested on her lower back. Lightning gently worked her tongue into his mouth and his tongue caressed hers fiercely. Their lips parted and Lightning lay down next to him, resting her head on his bare chest.

"Lightning?" Sephiroth asked and placed his hand on her arm.  
"Yes?" Lightning asked in reply. She placed her hand on his bicep and then gently squeezed it, feeling the muscle in his arm.  
"Would you like to sleep with me tonight?" Sephiroth asked. Lightning laughed.  
"Sephiroth, you know I'd love to. But we have to stay professional for the moment." Lightning replied.  
"Don't know if I'd be able to sleep without you." Sephiroth said with a smirk.  
"Aw... we'll see." Lightning replied, kissed his lips and got up. She sat on her own bed, took off her boots and climbed under the covers.  
"Goodnight." Lightning mused and closed her eyes as she rested her head against the pillow.  
"Goodnight." Sephiroth replied with a sigh before taking off his own boots and sneakily climbed into bed with Lightning. He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her cheek before nestling into her neck.

The sun rose and its rays poured into the room through the window. Sephiroth opened eyes and felt Lightning's soft, pink hair brush up against his chest. He gently pulled away her hair and kissed her ear. Lightning slowly opened her eyes and found her head resting against Sephiroth's bare chest. Sephiroth chuckled and kissed her head.  
"Morning." Sephiroth said and repeatedly kissed her neck.  
"Why are you in bed with me?" Lightning asked.  
"Because I love you." Sephiroth cooed.  
"I love you too." Lightning whispered and pressed her lips up against Sephiroth's. His hands rested on her lower back and slowly worked their way up her shirt as their kiss intensified. Lightning ran her hands up his abs and wrapped her arms around the back of his neck as their lips endlessly locked and unlocked.

Suddenly, there was a loud knock at the door. The couple pulled away and stared at the person knocking at the door.  
"You're burning daylight, let's go already!" Zack exclaimed and then headed downstairs to meet up with Cloud and Tifa. Sephiroth and Lightning just looked at each other in shock and got out of bed, Sephiroth quickly putting on his coat. Lightning picked up her gunblade and followed Sephiroth out of the inn.

Once everyone was outside and ready to go, Tifa led the others up Mount Nibel. Lightning kept a sharp eye out for any signs of the plaque. The mountainous ranges were barren of life, not a single monster jumped out to attack them.  
"This is weird..." Jack commented.  
"Found anything yet?" Lightning asked the silver haired warrior.  
"Nope. Haven't even a piece of a plaque yet. You?" Sephiroth asked her in return.  
"No such luck." Lightning replied with a shake of her head. Soon, they arrived at the abandoned reactor. Lightning could feel the reactor having an evil presence about it, almost as if something was in there, waiting for any one of them to mess up and take them out.

"Sephiroth, you and Zack go inside and check out what's wrong with it. I'll keep searching out here. Let me know if you find anything." Lightning instructed and Sephiroth nodded, briefly pressing his lips up against hers before pulling away and leading Zack inside the reactor. Tifa tried to wander in and Cloud barred her path. Tifa stomped in protest and crossed her arms. Lightning snuck around the back of the reactor to try and find the plaque.

Inside the reactor, Zack was looking at the monsters in the tubes whilst Sephiroth searched for the plaque.  
"What are these?" Zack asked and poked at the glass.  
"Experiments. With Jenova cells. That's all you need to know at the moment." Sephiroth replied and then looked up at the door marked 'Jenova'. He stared at it in wonder.  
"Sephiroth? What exactly are you looking for?" Zack asked. Sephiroth turned away from the door and stared at his fellow first class SOLDIER.  
"That is not for you to know." Sephiroth replied and continued his search for the plaque, occasionally looking up at the door with 'Jenova' above it.

Suddenly, Genesis wandered into the reactor through the door marked 'Jenova'. He sat down on the stairs and threw a dumbapple into the air before catching it again.  
"My soul, corrupted by vengeance, hath endured torment, to find the end of the journey, in my own salvation, and your eternal slumber." Genesis said with a sly smile.  
"You love quoting Loveless, don't you? You never change Genesis." Sephiroth replied coldly. Genesis only laughed.  
"What are you here for?" Zack asked. Genesis stared at Zack and shook his head.  
"I'm here to find out where Sephiroth's loyalties lie." Genesis replied.  
"It's certainly not with you, that's for sure." Sephiroth said with a scowl.  
"But it should be. You, Angeal and I are all the same. We're all monsters. Even one of the people outside is a monster. And you're not here for the reactor. You're here to strengthen the monster outside by finding the plaques." Genesis scorned. Sephiroth looked at his former friend in surprise.  
"How do you know about the prophecy and the task plaques?" Sephiroth asked.  
"Let's just say I have a connection." Genesis replied with a smirk.

"Zack, leave. I must find what he knows. Alone." Sephiroth instructed. Zack shook his head.  
"I'm part of this too!" Zack exclaimed in reply.  
"No, you're not Zack. Just because you have his sword doesn't mean that you are a part of the prophecy." Genesis retorted. Sephiroth stared at Genesis in confusion.  
"What do you know?" Sephiroth asked. The auburn angel laughed and held his dumbapple up into the light.  
"You see, the gift of the goddess isn't the Jenova cells like I thought it was... Ragnarok was tasked with destroying Gaia, because Gaia holds the soul of the Maker. Destroy the cage, and the bird is set free. Destroy Gaia, and the Maker may recreate Cocoon and Gran Pulse. And the dying Lifestream shall become one with Valhalla, bringing us to the lands of wealth. That wealth is the gift of the goddess." Genesis replied and tossed the dumbapple to Zack. Zack caught it and placed it on the ground.  
"You're crazy." Zack said and violently shook his head. Genesis laughed and pulled a piece of concrete out of his pocket. Genesis looked down at the plaque and smiled.

"The second task leading to the completion of Ragnarok. Rose of Cocoon, Servant of Gran Pulse... awaken your violent self and destroy the one chosen to fall under your grasp. Take out the weakling l'Cie and your journey continues, with your lover by your side." Genesis recited and tossed the plaque to Sephiroth. Sephiroth caught it and placed it in his pocket.  
"How can you read Cocoon script?" Sephiroth asked. Genesis chuckled.  
"The power of a fal'Cie is never to be underestimated." He replied with a sly smirk and walked over to Zack.

"As for you... Your Focus shall be to die at the hands of Ragnarok." Genesis said and stepped out of the way. A shadowy figure appeared at the top of the stairs. It was a mechanical beast with a face resembling that of a human. He laughed evilly as Genesis wandered over to him.  
"Good to see you again, Barthandelus." Genesis said to the fal'Cie. The fal'Cie laughed and grabbed Zack's legs, suspending him in the air upside down. With his other hand, he tapped Zack's left arm and it began to glow and eerie white. Barthandelus dropped Zack and the newly branded man fell into a deep unconsciousness. The brand of a Sanctum l'Cie scarred his flesh as the fal'Cie returned into the Lifestream. Sephiroth knelt by Zack's side and checked his pulse before examining his brand.  
"What did you do Genesis?" Sephiroth asked the chuckling angel.  
"Oh Sephiroth... you know that the fates are cruel. I should have been the hero, but Etro chose you. No matter, we will all be heading to paradise soon enough." Genesis replied with a laugh.

"Genesis, you are twisted." Sephiroth said and shook his head. Genesis laughed again.  
"Please Sephiroth, you are as much of a monster as I am! That's right, you are like me, except you were created differently. You were a fusion of these imperfect monsters in the tubes. The fusion of such beasts, created the perfect monster. The perfect killing machine. Unknowingly, they created the perfect mate for Ragnarok. You." Genesis replied before sitting back down on the steps. Sephiroth was shocked, he wasn't sure whether to believe his friend or not. Genesis laughed and clicked his fingers.

The entrance to the reactor was opened and a shower of red rose petals and white feathers flew into the reactor. Footsteps echoed through the reactor as Genesis stood to greet the visitor.  
"Welcome Ragnarok." Genesis said with a smirk. Sephiroth turned to find Lightning standing behind him, a large white angel wing extending out in her left.  
"Not you too." Sephiroth uttered.  
"Sephiroth, I didn't do this. It was Hojo." Lightning replied.  
"Surprised to find your girlfriend is one of us?" Genesis asked.  
"Lightning, how could you not tell me?" Sephiroth asked.  
"I didn't even know that this was a side effect!" Lightning replied in defence.  
"I'm sorry, this is too much for me to handle. We're done." Sephiroth said, placed the next plaque in her hand before going to walk out of the reactor.  
"You're kidding, right?" Lightning asked, not fully grasping what Sephiroth had just said.  
"I'm not." Sephiroth replied and then took another step towards the door.  
"Sephiroth, please. We can make it work." Lightning said in protest. Sephiroth turned around to face the spy.  
"It won't." He replied.  
"Sephiroth, please don't go." Lightning said sadly. Sephiroth said nothing and continued towards the door.  
"Sephiroth! Don't walk away from me!" Lightning exclaimed with a hurt tone. The silver haired warrior ignored her and continued on.

"Sephiroth!" Lightning roared, her voice reverberating through the metal structure. All of a sudden, her brand began to burn and Sephiroth began to feel a violent stabbing in his chest. Lightning's wing retreated as she buckled to the ground and grasped her chest. Sephiroth couldn't handle the darkness that pulsed trough his veins and his eyes rolled to the back of his head before he collapsed. Lightning's breathing quickened as her heart almost stopped beating. Genesis stood up from the steps, with his red rapier in his hands. He sauntered over to the unconscious Sephiroth and chuckled.  
"If you won't tame Ragnarok and gain the gift of the goddess, I will. Rest in the Lifestream Sephiroth. My reign as hero begins now." Genesis said and raised his rapier over his head.

Pure rage took over and she morphed into Ragnarok's weakest form. She got between Sephiroth and Genesis before baring her teeth at the auburn angel. Genesis looked at Ragnarok with pure shock as the beast slashed at him. One of her strikes connected with Genesis' face and his head turned to the side, only to expose the massive, bleeding gash over the left side of his face. Ragnarok snarled at Genesis and began to advance on him.  
"I'll be back... Don't you worry about that. I'll be back." Genesis replied and left the reactor. As soon as the black winged angel left, Ragnarok eased up and turned to the passed out SOLDIER hero. She wrapped her arms around him and nuzzled his chest. Zack slowly came to and pushed himself up from the ground. He took one look at Ragnarok and ran out of the reactor to tell Cloud and Tifa of what he saw. Ragnarok paid no notice to Zack and kept her eyes on Sephiroth.

His cat like eyes slowly fluttered open and he groaned, reaching for his chest. Ragnarok pushed away his hand and gently licked his chest before nuzzling him again. The pain in Sephiroth's chest eased up. Ragnarok's eyes met Sephiroth's and he couldn't help but to try and explore the amount of fury in those striking eyes. Sephiroth pressed his lips up against hers for a few moments before pulling away. Ragnarok almost smiled in delight. But that delight was short lived as the beast collapsed beside him and slowly morphed back into the pink haired spy. Sephiroth sat up and took the l'Cie into his arms. He kissed her forehead and stroked the side of her face.  
"I was fool. I can look past this. I love you." He said and kissed her nose. He took her into his arms and carried her to the Shinra mansion's hidden library.


	9. Chapter 9

Zack wandered into the library to find Sephiroth leaning against a bookshelf with his eyes following the text of a book, occasionally looking up at his sleeping lover and then back down at the book again.  
"Sephiroth! What are you doing here?" Zack asked. Sephiroth lifted his head from the worn maroon book and glared at the black haired l'Cie.  
"Zack, please leave me alone." Sephiroth replied and then put the book down on the mahogany desk before him.  
"No, what did that thing do to me?" Zack asked in confusion and pointed to the white brand on his arm. Sephiroth looked at Zack and shook his head.  
"You expect me to know everything? I'm not a scientist Zack." Sephiroth replied and shot Zack a warning glance. Lightning groaned and Sephiroth immediately knelt down next to her.

She opened her eyes and looked around the room.  
"Where is this?" Lightning asked.  
"Under the Shinra mansion. It's ok. You're safe." Sephiroth replied and gently pressed his lips up against hers.  
"I'm out." Zack said and threw his arms into the air before walking out of the library, closing the door behind him. Sephiroth gently slid his tongue into her mouth as he lay down and pulled her over the top of him. Lightning sighed as his tongue slowly caressed hers. Sephiroth's hands slid underneath her shirt and they gently massaged the tops of her breasts. Their lips parted and they just lay there, staring into each other's eyes.

Sephiroth slowly got up from under Lightning and picked up another book before reading it. She stood up and pulled the plaque out of her pocket.  
"The second task leading to the completion of Ragnarok. Rose of Cocoon, Servant of Gran Pulse... awaken your violent self and destroy the one chosen to fall under your grasp. Take out the weakling l'Cie and your journey continues, with your lover by your side... What does that mean?" Lightning asked the silver haired warrior. He looked up from his book and thought for a bit.  
"Genesis told Zack that his Focus was to die at the hands of Ragnarok. Does that mean that his death is the key to making Ragnarok stronger?" Sephiroth asked in reply.  
"It does, but he has to die by my hand. No other way or Ragnarok won't get any stronger." Lightning replied.

She sighed and placed the plaque on the desk. Lightning sat on the desk and watched Sephiroth read.  
"What are you reading?" Lightning asked.  
"Previous files on something called the 'Jenova project'." Sephiroth replied. Lightning sighed. She knew that Genesis was partially lying about his genes, she knew that he had said that only to stir Sephiroth up.  
"Damn it!" Sephiroth cursed, slammed the book shut and threw it across the room. Lightning got off of the desk and wrapped her arms around Sephiroth.

"It's ok. Don't worry about it. Genesis is just being an idiot." Lightning replied and kissed Sephiroth's neck.  
"I don't know... he knew more he let on." Sephiroth replied and picked up another book. Lightning sighed again and shook her head.  
"You're thinking about it too much. Don't let it bother you." She said with a chuckle.  
"What are planning to find in these books?" Lightning asked.  
"I want to find out more about the projects that created me." Sephiroth replied, barely lifting his gaze from the book before him. Lightning looked around the bookshelves around her and sighed.  
"You're seriously going to read all this?" She asked. Sephiroth said nothing and continued to read. Lightning wandered the shelves, reading titles for amusement.  
"Origins of Jenova, Study of Materia, The Cetra, The Weapons of the Planet, Ragnarok's Duty... That one looks interesting." Lightning thought aloud and grabbed the book off of the shelf before standing next to Sephiroth. She opened the book and slowly read over the text.

Sephiroth put his book down and then looked over at the book his lover was reading.  
"The prophecy, it's here. And the rest of the tasks. They're all here." Lightning said with a relieved smile.  
"And what are the last two tasks?" Sephiroth asked. Lightning skimmed over the text and found the next task.  
"Soldier of Hope, Seeker of Truth... your next task is to gain the power of the conqueror of worlds. Your cells will merge with hers and in turn, you will receive eternal life, never to crumble as the centuries roll by." Lightning recited.  
"Wait, didn't Hojo perform that experiment on you?" Sephiroth asked.  
"Jenova cells. Of course. Well, that leaves two more tasks to complete." Lightning replied.  
"What's the last one?" Sephiroth asked. Lightning studied the script carefully before reading aloud.  
"The final task is upon you. You have a long road ahead. Wielder of Zantestuken, Angel of Thunder... you and your lover must kill the remaining Cetra. How she is killed doesn't matter. Gain the White Materia and demolish it. Nothing must stop our return." Lightning recited and then shut the book.

Sephiroth gave a loud yawn before stretching and picking up another book. Lightning checked the time on her phone and sighed. Twenty three hours and twenty four minutes. She put her phone away and whipped the book out of Sephiroth's hands.  
"No more reading." Lightning commanded and wrapped her arms around him.  
"And why not?" Sephiroth asked with a sour tone.  
"Baby, it's late. You need rest as much as I do. Come on." Lightning replied and kissed his cheek. Sephiroth wound his arms around her waist and pulled her close before kissing her forehead.  
"I'll be there in another half an hour." Sephiroth said. Lightning shook her head.  
"No, come on. You can't stay here all night." Lightning replied.  
"I won't be long." Sephiroth said with a cheeky smile. Lightning sighed and buried her face into his neck before kissing his collarbone.  
"Alright. Don't be long, or I will make you sleep in." She replied with a smirk.  
"I love you." Sephiroth said.  
"I love you too." Lightning replied and pressed her lips up against his. A few moments later, their lips parted and Lightning left the manor.


	10. Chapter 10

As the sun peeked out from behind the clouds, Lightning opened her eyes to the empty room around her. She looked over at the perfectly made bed beside hers and sighed. She knew that a certain someone had no sleep that night. Lightning got up and wandered over to the window and gazed out at the horizon. The sunrise was a beautiful wonder of nature. The oranges and pinks surrounding the sun slowly blended into a baby blue as the clouds fled the scene. Over in the distance, was the Shinra Mansion, hiding in its secluded darkness. Not a speck of sunlight reached the large building.  
"Sephiroth... is the darkness... is my hidden darkness slowly changing you?" Lightning asked herself before turning away from the window.

Zack walked to her doorway and knocked on the door.  
"Zack, the door is open. Just talk, I'm already awake." Lightning replied to the first class l'Cie. Zack treaded carefully into her room and looked around the room. "The light in the library was left on last night. All of last night." Zack said with slight worry tainting his youthful features.  
"I know. He wouldn't leave. It's like him though, always wanting to know exactly what he's up against. I hope he leaves that room soon." Lightning replied. Zack looked down at the bandage covering his new brand and then looked up at the spy.  
"What did you do to yourself this time? Got a burn from attacking bombs again?" Lightning asked him before removing his bandage. She gasped silently as his white brand gleamed against his pale skin.  
"What is it?" Zack asked.  
"You're a Sanctum l'Cie... How is that possible? All of the fal'Cie died when Cocoon and Gran Pulse collided. Unless... it was from the Lifestream. What's your Focus?" Lightning asked the SOLDIER operative.

"Huh? What's a l'Cie? What's a fal'Cie? What's a Focus?" Zack asked in confusion. Lightning sighed.  
"A l'Cie is a servant of the fal'Cie. Fal'Cie are mechanical gods that can brand a person to be their servant. A Focus is the task you were given to complete. If you complete your Focus without being killed, you will turn to crystal and gain eternal life. If you don't, you will turn into a Cie'th. A mindless zombie fated to wander the wilderness until you can't no more and you fossilize into a Cie'th stone." Lightning explained.  
"Genesis told me that my Focus was to die at the hands of Ragnarok. And then a shadow picked me up and gave me this." He said, pointing to his brand before continuing, "Then I blacked out. I woke up and found a beast looming over Sephiroth and I ran. What does that mean?" Lightning shook her head and sighed.  
"It means, you're screwed. Sorry, but there's not much choice. You either die or become a zombie." Lightning replied.  
"I'd rather die than eat people's brains." Zack said. Lightning sighed and slapped her forehead with her palm.  
"Cie'th don't eat people. They just kill them." Lightning replied with an annoyed tone.

"Lightning?" Zack asked.  
"Yes?" Lightning asked in reply.  
"You don't really think that Sephiroth will go crazy, do you?" Zack asked. Lightning sighed and stole a brief glance at the distant mansion before turning back to the puppy with her reply.  
"I hope not. I doubt it, but there is a possibility." Lightning replied with a certain sadness shining in her ice blue eyes. Cloud poked his spiky blonde head in through the doorway and then looked down at the ground awkwardly.  
"Hey, Zack. Your friend isn't wearing his helmet." Lightning said with a half-hearted chuckle, trying to change the subject. Zack turned to find his friend standing in the doorway, with his helmet in one hand and his gun slung over his shoulder.  
"Cloud, you should have kept your helmet off from the start. You're home for goodness sake!" Zack cheerfully exclaimed at his blonde friend, who in turn shrugged with a smile.  
"There's a reason for everything." Cloud replied with a smile. Zack laughed and wandered out of the spy's room, his previous discoveries completely forgotten.

Lightning walked back down to the Shinra Mansion and stood at the library's open door. Two separate voices were ramming comments down each other's throats. Lightning didn't want to intrude and she just waited by the door, picking up bits of their conversation.  
"No. You can rot in hell for all I care." A dark and emotionless voice said and the sound of a page turning followed afterwards.  
"I thought I was your friend!" an aristocratic voice hissed.  
"You were until you and Angeal left me. You expect me to help you, after you two betrayed me like that?" the first voice asked in reply. Lightning assumed that the first voice was Sephiroth and the second was Genesis.  
"I am degrading at a much faster pace than before. I couldn't stay. Too many questions would be raised." Genesis replied quietly.  
"Too many questions? People are asking too many questions because of your clones' presence!" Sephiroth said, a quiet hiss tainting his haunted voice. Genesis scoffed.

Suddenly, the room went quiet and Sephiroth slammed his book down on the mahogany desk before looking out the door and finding a shocked Lightning staring at him from behind the door. He took her hand and kissed her cheek. He pulled her into the room and Genesis' eyes grew wild and demonic.  
"I told you I'd be back." Genesis said with an evil smirk.  
"Cut the crap Genesis. You don't scare me." Lightning replied and folded her arms across her chest. Genesis laughed.  
"But I should. I should scare the both of you." Genesis replied with a tone almost mimicking that of Sephiroth's.  
"You don't scare either of us. Get the picture, dumbass." Sephiroth retorted coldly.  
"I'm not entirely human. Neither are you. Neither was Angeal. Neither is Zack. Neither are you Ragnarok." Genesis said with a smirk.  
"It's Lightning." Lightning said and Sephiroth wrapped his arm around her waist before kissing her ear.  
"Yeah, I don't care." Genesis replied with a sneer.  
"Shut up, you obnoxious twit." Lightning snarled at the degrading auburn angel. He laughed and headed for the door.  
"Careful of what you say, Ragnarok. It could be used against you." Genesis hissed and then sauntered out of the library.

When the angel's footsteps could no longer be heard, Sephiroth released her waist and picked up another book from the shelf.  
"What was that about?" Lightning asked.  
"Genesis came in just to stir up trouble. I know him better than he realises." Sephiroth replied and opened up the book he had just picked up. A chilling air of silence drifted into the room and almost made Lightning shiver. She began to drift into thought, wandering about things that stayed hidden in the dark corner of her mind for the past few days. The silence splitting sound of turning pages kept Lightning's train of thought on its rails.  
"Hey, you alright?" Lightning asked her silver haired lover. He stayed silent and continued to flip pages.  
"An answer would be nice, you know." Lightning replied to his silence. Sephiroth looked up from his book and held her gaze for a few seconds before returning back to the book.

"Sephiroth! Stop reading bloody scientific fairytales and answer me!" Lightning exclaimed.  
"Leave me to read in peace." Sephiroth replied coldly. Lightning sighed angrily and crossed her arms over her chest.  
"No, I won't. Not until you leave with me." Lightning retorted with an annoyed tone. Sephiroth put the book down and loomed over his lover.  
"Lightning, I don't want to hurt you. So just leave me be." Sephiroth said and then picked up the book again.  
"You can hurt me all you like... Just remember that I have the power to destroy Gaia, with or without your help. Killing you would be as easy as squishing a bug." Lightning replied with a vicious snarl.  
"Don't threaten me." Sephiroth said, never lifting his eyes from the text.  
"You're acting like an inconsiderate asshole. You know that, right?" Lightning asked and turned to walk out of the room.  
"And you are being a fucking bitch. You know that, right?" Sephiroth asked in reply.

Lightning swung around to face the reading SOLDIER hero and placed one hand on her hip.  
"Listen here, Sephiroth. You think that you are this amazing, undefeatable warrior, but you're not. In fact you are just a selfish, barbaric, narrow-minded, cold-hearted, egotistic test subject. I can't believe you actually made me think that you love me. You don't. You love power, just like Genesis. You love your pride, just like Angeal. You are nothing but a puppet, you know that? Genesis is bending you to suit his diabolical scheme and you are blindly doing what he says. You're a fucking puppet, Sephiroth. Get your nose out of those books, and face reality like the shit-faced, hellhole it really is." Lightning replied in annoyance and walked out of the room.

Sephiroth put his book down and vanished, only to reappear in front of the doorway, barring Lightning's path.  
"You bitch. You should know better than to push me too far." He hissed and made her back into the room. She hit the front of the mahogany desk and almost lost her balance.  
"You're trapped." Sephiroth replied darkly and the only exit slammed shut and locked by itself. Sephiroth placed his hands on the desk either side of Lightning's hips, trapping her in the centre. Despite her bleak situation, Lightning was already planning to make an escape.

Sephiroth pressed his lips up against Lightning's neck repeatedly before Lightning pushed him off of her. Sephiroth wrapped his arms around her waist and pressed his body up against hers before nipping her ear lobes. Lightning tried to push him off of her again, but his grip on her was unbreakable.  
"Stop it!" Lightning exclaimed and tried to push him off again, with no luck. Sephiroth only laughed at her futile efforts to free herself from his grasp.  
"Your bitchiness and harsh words really turn me on. You know that, don't you?" Sephiroth asked the spy lovingly before kissing her neck again. Lightning just stood in confusion.  
"Wait, so you're not going to kill me?" Lightning asked in reply. Sephiroth laughed and kissed her collarbone.  
"Why would I do that? I love you. I don't want to hurt you." He replied as one of his hands ran down her leg.  
"You're so confusing..." Lightning stated with a sigh. Sephiroth grinned and kissed her cheek.  
"So are you." He replied.  
"You're even more so." Lightning countered and kissed his forehead.

Sephiroth laughed again and slowly worked her jacket off of her shoulders. Lightning placed her hands on Sephiroth's cheeks and pressed her lips up against his. Their lips constantly locked and unlocked as Sephiroth's hands roamed her body. Lightning slowly worked her tongue into Sephiroth's mouth and roughly twisted her tongue with his. Sephiroth's hands slid up the back of her shirt and they rested on her lower back, slowly massaging out the knots in her back. She sighed with pleasure as his tongue took over and fiercely intertwined with hers. Their lips parted for only a few seconds as Sephiroth picked her up and sat her on the desk before their lips connected again. Lightning pulled away, whipped her shirt off and began to lick Sephiroth's neck. The warrior sighed before unbuckling his coat and throwing it to the ground. Lightning wrapped her arms around Sephiroth's neck and she began to gently bite his ear lobe. He gently removed her lips from his ear and placed his hand on her chest, slowly forcing her to lie down on the desk. She chuckled as his tongue tenderly traced the outline of her scorched brand.  
"Oh Sephiroth!" Lightning exclaimed with a giggle and kissed his head.

"What's going on?" a shocked Zack asked, staring at the couple making out on the mahogany desk. Sephiroth turned around and acknowledged Zack's presence. He sighed and hung his head in embarrassment.  
"Shit." He cursed.  
"Zack, wait outside the library and we will call you in." Lightning instructed. Zack shrugged and left the room. Lightning and Sephiroth quickly redressed. Lightning sat on the edge of the desk and Sephiroth lent against the bookshelf behind him.  
"Now, come in." Lightning said and Zack trudged in.  
"What was that?" Zack asked with a confused expression.  
"None of your business." Sephiroth replied. He picked up a book and flicked through the pages, quickly skimming over the text.  
"I just came to say that Tifa, Cloud and I are going to get a late lunch and I wanted to know if you two wanted to come along." Zack said.  
"I'll go. Sounds good. You coming?" Lightning asked her lover.  
"No. I've got a lot of reading to do." Sephiroth replied.  
"Do you want me to bring you back anything?" Lightning asked.  
"No, I'll be fine. Go on without me." Sephiroth replied, never lifting his gaze from the text.  
"Alright, I'll see you later then." Lightning said and followed Zack out of the library.

Sephiroth never left the library and always kept the door locked with the light on. Nobody expected what happened five days later.


	11. Chapter 11

The smell of burning wood and flesh filled Lightning's nostrils as she stood adjacent to her lover. He showed no sign of drawing breath, no sign of his adrenaline pulsing through his veins. All she saw was the cold and unforgiving darkness in his cat like eyes.  
"What did you do?" She asked. Sephiroth laughed as the sound of suffering hummed its haunted tune to his ear drums.  
"This is only the beginning... Follow me. We will bring an end to this world and begin anew." Sephiroth replied and the flames almost parted like the Red Sea, never even singeing his luscious silver hair as he sauntered towards the mako reactor.  
"Hey! I'm not done with you yet!" Tifa exclaimed angrily as she and her father chased after him.  
"This is bad." Lightning uttered before following the trail carefully.

Sephiroth stood at the foot of the staircase leading to the door marked 'JENOVA'.  
"Who are you to burn down this town?" Tifa's father bellowed at Sephiroth. With Masamune in his hand, he slowly turned around and smirked before impaling the man with his katana. Tifa screamed and tears ran down her face as Sephiroth left the blade in her father's bleeding torso before ascending up the staircase. Tifa picked up the blade and tried to slash at the crazed hero. He heard her coming and knocked her down before taking Masamune from her. She tripped down the stairs and knocked her head against the stairs. She moaned in pain and curled up in the foetal position. Sephiroth chuckled briefly before heading up the stairs and headed into the room behind the door.

Lightning walked in and spotted Tifa on the floor, cursing Sephiroth's name and swearing at him, even though he wasn't in the room. Lightning headed up the stairs to find Sephiroth and Zack holding their blades at each other's throats. Beads of sweat dripped down Zack's determined expression as Sephiroth casually smiled and pushed him backward towards Lightning. He stumbled and regained his balance just centimetres away from where she stood.  
"I'm sorry Zack." Lightning said and pointed her Blazefire Pistol at his head. Zack turned around and shook his head at the spy.  
"Not you too..." Zack said in disbelief.  
"You don't deserve to die like this. But you don't deserve to become a Cie'th either. This is for your own good." Lightning replied and pulled the trigger. The gunshot and the sound of the Buster Sword dropping reverberated throughout the metal structure as Zack crumbled to the ground, blood pooling around his wound. Lightning sheathed her gun and walked towards Sephiroth.  
"Good work." He said with a smile.  
"Sephiroth, we could have gone about this without destroying the town and murdering people who aren't involved. Innocents didn't have to die." Lightning replied with a snarl, a small sadness tainting her vicious tone.  
"Zack was involved." Sephiroth retorted.  
"But Tifa's father wasn't. Not to mention the people that died in the fire." Lightning replied and then turned away from Sephiroth.

Sephiroth wrapped her arms around Lightning and kissed her neck.  
"I love you." He whispered and kissed her ear.  
"I love you too." Lightning replied quietly. Sephiroth turned around and looked at the blue extra terrestrial being suspended in the tube. Lightning turned around and saw Jenova sitting there in the clear liquid.  
"Jenova was your mother, yes?" Lightning asked. Sephiroth shook his head.  
"No, I was lied to my entire life. My father is Hojo and my mother is Lucrecia Crescent. I found out last night, shuffling through files. I simply have Jenova's cells. How could they have kept that secret from me this entire time?" Sephiroth asked himself before tightening his grip on Masamune and stepped towards the pod. Lightning watched on as Sephiroth sliced the head off of Jenova and gazed at it in awe.  
"Are you sure you want to destroy Gaia with me?" Lightning asked.  
"Positive." Sephiroth replied and nodded.  
"But I'm going to act like I know nothing more of my heritage than the lies I was told. Just to mess with them." Sephiroth said with a laugh.

Cloud charged in with the Buster Sword in hand and pushed past Lightning, ran up to Sephiroth and rammed the blade into his side. Cloud pulled out the blade and Sephiroth stumbled off of the stairs, Jenova's head in one hand and Masamune in another. Lightning switched to the medic paradigm and cast cure repetitively on Sephiroth. His wound was too great to heal completely, but it did help ease the pain. Sephiroth plunged Masamune into Cloud's torso and lifted him off of the ground. Suddenly, Cloud turned the tables on Sephiroth and threw him against the wall, leaving Sephiroth to fall into the reactor. Lightning's heart tore in two as she watched him plummet to the depths of the reactor.

Cloud clutched his torso and staggered towards the stairs. A suddenly enraged Lightning switched paradigms to commando and pulled out her Blazefire Saber, trailing Cloud down the stairs. Cloud dropped the sword and leant against the rails for support. Lightning stood in the stairway, her chest violently rising and falling as rage slowly melted into wrath. Cloud turned to see Lightning and he nodded.  
"You shouldn't have stayed near him." Cloud said and then clutched his torso as he withered in pain.

Lightning put the Blazefire Saber away and let Ragnarok take control. Her body ached and she collapsed to the ground, letting her body transform into the child of wrath. Ragnarok stood before the blonde infantryman and pounced on him when he wasn't aware. Cloud screamed as Ragnarok sunk her nails into his chest and ripped her hand back, tearing his skin in the process. Ragnarok looked down at the crimson substance staining her skin and licked it off of her hand. Cloud stared up at the monster with shock. He didn't want to believe that the vicious monster licking his blood off of her hand truly was agent Lightning. The beast growled with pleasure and pinned his shoulders to the ground. Ragnarok felt her pulse race as fear began to blossom in Cloud's blue eyes. Ragnarok leant forward and placed her teeth onto the skin of his neck.

"Tranquilise the beast!" Hojo exclaimed to the infantryman next to him. The masked man in blue held his rifle up and aimed at Ragnarok's leg. She pulled her teeth away from the blonde infantryman's neck and snarled at Hojo and his accomplices. He pulled the trigger and the dart penetrated the skin of her leg. Ragnarok ripped the dart out of her leg and then began to shift back into the l'Cie. A weary Lightning stood up and reached for her Blazefire Saber.  
"Tranquilise her." Hojo commanded.  
"But she's not an animal, sir." The infantryman replied. Hojo gave the infantryman a death stare. Lightning held the blade up to Cloud's neck, fury burning in her aqua eyes.  
"I gave you an order. Tranquilise her." Hojo retorted and the infantryman sighed before shooting another dart into Lightning's arm. She pulled out the dart and threw it to the ground. She stepped down the steps and held her Blazefire Pistol out to Hojo. Her world began to spin around her. Lightning's body began to sway as the tranquilisers took control of her senses.  
"You dare deny me revenge?" Lightning asked quietly as her body collapsed from underneath herself and she landed on the cold, metal floor. Her sight began to fade and her sense of smell was completely gone. Her limbs refused to obey her brain's commands and they became immobile.  
"Gaia will fall... I swear on lost lives of Cocoon and Gran Pulse... This nest of vipers will fall..." Lightning said before her sight became darkness and her hearing shut off.

"Pick her up and follow me." Hojo said to the infantryman next to him and the man nodded before going to obey orders. Hojo turned to the infantryman with the rifle.  
"Take the blonde back to the mansion's lab." Hojo commanded and the infantryman picked up the dying Cloud. Hojo led the man with the unconscious spy in his arms. In the mansion's basement, there was a crypt with two coffins in them. One was wooden and locked with a skeleton key, a key that Hojo kept in his coat. The other was made of four layers of titanium. The man who held Lightning in his arms put her down on the dusty ground and left the crypt. Lightning's eyes slowly fluttered open. Her white wing came out of hiding and lifted her body into the air, letting her regain her balance before she set her feet back on the ground.  
"Give your strongest tranquiliser." Hojo commanded and the scientist next to him handed him a gun loaded with the tranquilisers. Hojo pulled the trigger and a dart penetrated the skin of Lightning's upper arm. She pulled the dart out again and she stumbled over before her senses quickly cut off again. Hojo gave the gun back to his assistant and called the infantryman back in.

"Hello Hojo. Miss me?" Genesis asked as he kicked the corpse of the infantryman out of his way.  
"Genesis, I have an important job for you." Hojo replied with a nod.  
"Like?" Genesis asked and crossed his arms.  
"Put her in the titanium coffin for starters." Hojo replied. Genesis shrugged and picked up the unconscious spy, still gripping her gunblade and laid her carefully in the coffin. Hojo lifted the lid and placed it over the top. He had the lid wielded to the bottom and wrapped the whole thing in unbreakable chains, locking it with five brass locks. Hojo held six keys in his hands and gave them to Genesis.  
"I want you to watch over these two coffins. One holds Chaos, the other one holds Ragnarok. You know which is which. Don't let them out. Please don't let them out." Hojo said with an almost pleading expression. Genesis nodded.  
"I don't have anything better to do. One question, though. Why isn't Chaos locked up like Ragnarok?" Genesis asked as he placed the keys into his pocket. Hojo closed his eyes and sighed.  
"Because, Chaos will sleep for thousands of years. He thinks he's the father of the Chosen One and he doesn't want to witness the destruction he will cause. Ragnarok however, will wake up and find a way to destroy Gaia without the Chosen One by her side, as sadly, he is dead." Hojo replied.  
"Alright. I'll do it. Do I have permission to kill if they do escape?" Genesis asked.  
"Chaos can't be killed, neither can Ragnarok. You can try, but dying will be impossible." Hojo replied and led the remainder of his party towards the labs.  
"I'm counting on you." Hojo said and left the crypt, sealing it behind him.

Genesis set his rapier down by the wooden coffin and sat on the metal coffin and brought out a white book with gold detailing. He flicked to a page and read the text aloud.  
"From the ashes and our ashes alone, she will rise. Ragnarok, the child of our fallen's fury. There will be one among us who will succumb to the darkness of the heart of Ragnarok. Through this one among many, Ragnarok will avenge us, all of us. Cocoon and Gran Pulse shall be avenged, through the blood, tears and the ultimate destruction of Gaia. Who knew that Loveless contained more than the poem itself?" Genesis asked himself and stood up. He placed the book down on the metal coffin and walked towards the torches. The silent flicker of flames eased his tense soul. The flames danced their unrehearsed choreography as the black winged angel watched on. Above him, he heard the rumble of thunder and the rain battering the roof of the mansion.  
"This isn't over. He's not dead. He can't be... never fear Ragnarok, you will meet him again. I swear it." Genesis uttered and stood next to the flame. He lent up against the wall and crossed his arms. He lowered his head and let the angry sounds of the thunderstorm lull him to sleep.


	12. Chapter 12

_Five years later_

Cloud, Tifa, Barret, Yuffie, Red XIII, Aeris, Cid and Cat Sith wondered the underground crypts of the Niebelhiem mansion. The musty scent of decaying flesh and dust filled their noses as the dust was kicked up by their feet. "I want some goddamn tea." Cid stated before stopping and folding his arms. "It's not tea, you old coot!" Yuffie exclaimed with her hands on her hips. Aeris laughed at Yuffie and Tifa shook her head at the scene. Cloud found a sealed crypt and studied the door carefully. "Hey, found something." Cloud called after his party members. They headed over to the door and all looked at it in wonder. Barret loaded his gun arm and shot down the door. He blew on the gun and nodded. "What do you know? It's a crypt." Barret said with a smug smile. Cloud wondered in first, followed by Tifa, Yuffie and Aeris.

Genesis looked up from the white book he was reading and put it away. "Hey Cloud? Isn't that Genesis Rhapsodos?" Aeris asked, pointing to the former first class SOLDIER. "That's him all right." Cloud replied with a nod. "Why are you here?" Genesis asked, reaching for the red rapier sitting beside him. "We're looking for Sephiroth. Don't know anybody who's seen him or can track him?" Cloud asked in reply. Genesis looked over at the wooden coffin on his left and the chained titanium coffin on his right. "I do. Both of these coffins contain sleeping beings that have been in contact with Sephiroth and can track him." He replied and looked down at the keys in his pocket. He pulled them out and showed the four of them. "I have sixteen keys. Only six will open the locks. You may only choose one each. And your other party members may not choose, as they haven't seen me personally about it." Genesis said and held the keys firmly in his hands. The four of them picked one key each and Genesis put the rest back in his pocket. "When you have tested them, give them back." He instructed.

Yuffie went first. She went to the wooden coffin and tried the key in the lock. She sighed when the lock didn't open. She tried the other five locks on the metal coffin and had no luck. She gave the key back to the angel, who put them in his pocket with the rest. Tifa tried her key in each of the locks and happened to get one of the locks on the chains to unlock. She too gave the key back to Genesis and stared at the shiny coffin in awe. Aeris tried her key in the locks and none of them worked. She pouted and gave the key back to the angel. Cloud put his key in the lock of the wooden coffin and the lock clicked. He gave the key back to Genesis and opened the lid. A man with long dark hair and haunted red eyes sat up and looked around. "Where am I?" he asked. "You are in the Niebelheim crypt, Chaos." Genesis replied with a smirk. "Chaos? My name is Vincent Valentine." The man replied with confusion. Genesis bent down to the metal coffin and locked the open lock before sitting on the coffin. Genesis laughed. "Whatever. You're free. You can leave. I recommend staying with this man's party though... you wouldn't want to get into a sticky situation." Genesis said with a smirk.

Suddenly, Vincent's eyes darkened and he searched the room. He gasped as his eyes wondered over the metal coffin. "What's in that coffin?" He asked and pointed to the chained coffin. "The destroyer of Gaia. If Sephiroth is as this man says, alive and out there somewhere, she needs to stay in this coffin." Genesis replied. "That's why we couldn't open both and there are sixteen keys. Because you didn't want us opening that coffin." Aeris said, looking at the coffin and grasping the White Materia in her pocket. "Besides, if you did unlock the locks it wouldn't open. The lid is wielded to the coffin. It is impossible to get out. Unless the destroyer has almost completed her tasks..." Genesis replied, quite unsure whether Ragnarok could get out or not. Vincent got out of the coffin and shook Cloud's hand. "Thanks for getting me out of there." Vincent said. "No problems. You just have to help us track down and kill Sephiroth." Cloud replied. "He's still alive!" Vincent exclaimed in surprise. Genesis sighed and nodded. "Yes. He came here a while ago. He wanted me to join him. Much like I tried to get him to join me five years ago." Genesis replied. "Go, he was headed for the Temple of the Ancients. He's looking for the Black Materia." Genesis said. "How do you know that?" Tifa asked. "He told me. He doesn't even know that the other instrument of Gaia's decimation was right here. That's what Hojo wanted. He didn't want anybody but himself and me to know about Ragnarok's whereabouts." Genesis replied. "You're in cohorts with Hojo?" Vincent asked with a sour hiss to his voice. Genesis shook his head. "No. He locked me in here with the keys for the coffins. I made more out of leftover iron to stop travellers like yourselves finding Ragnarok and releasing her." Genesis replied.

"Cloud, we need to go." Aeris said, her hand shaking as the materia's cool surface tingled against her skin. "Genesis, you coming?" Cloud asked. Genesis shook his head. "Ragnarok is my responsibility. So is Chaos. But Ragnarok is a priority. Go, time is of the essence." Genesis replied as he got off of the coffin and lent up against the wall. Cloud nodded and led the other four out of the crypt. "Cloud? Who's your friend?" Cid asked as he lit up a cigarette. "Vincent Valentine. I'm a former Turk. I will help you search for Sephiroth and kill him." Vincent replied. His last few words echoed and the walls of the crypt made the sounds bounce around more. Suddenly, the metal coffin began to violently shake. Genesis pulled out his rapier and ran to the entrance of the crypt. "Run, Ragnarok is waking up!" He exclaimed. "You don't need to tell me twice." Aeris replied and went to run away, but was pulled back by Tifa. "We have to help him!" she exclaimed. Vincent began to groan as he collapsed to the ground. "What's going on?" Cloud asked the groaning former Turk. "It's Chaos. I don't know what Hojo was thinking leaving two powerful beasts to rest side by side, but they are enemies." Genesis replied and waited for the inevitable.

The coffin burst open and shards of titanium flew in all directions. Cloud's party barely dodged the flying debris. Chaos stood tall and held his revolver tightly, waiting for Ragnarok to show herself. Ragnarok tackled Chaos and a vicious battle of legendary beasts unfolded. Chaos tried to shoot her, but she swiped him with the back of her hand and bit his hand. Chaos screeched and slammed his gun onto Ragnarok's head. "Chaos! Stop! She'll kill you!" Genesis exclaimed and sent a flurry of black feathers to distract Ragnarok. Ragnarok snarled at Chaos as Chaos hissed at Ragnarok. Genesis pulled out a grey materia and called upon its power. It released a ray of light that stunned the two beasts and they morphed back into their human forms. Vincent got up and wiped the blood away from his lip as Lightning's wing helped her up. "Being of the Lifestream, killer of the wicked." Lightning said, greeting Vincent with a cold stare. "Being of Gran Pulse, killer of worlds." Vincent replied, returning her cold stare. "Chaos is one of the weapons that will strengthen the Lifestream to save the Planet. Ragnarok can destroy those weapons as easily as you can a fly." Genesis explained.

Lightning looked around at the shocked faces around her and anger welled up inside of her. "You killed him... You killed the Chosen One... You are the bastard that ruined everything!" Lightning exclaimed and pulled out her Blazefire Pistol, aiming between Cloud's eyes. Cloud gasped as his memories of the Nibelheim incident flooded back. "The missing Shinra spy. But you were declared dead." Cloud said. "Do I look dead to you?" she hissed and took a step closer. Vincent pulled out his revolver and pointed it at Lightning. "Huh, nice gun." She said and nodded to Vincent's gun before turning back to Cloud. Lightning saw the brunette Cetra hiding behind Tifa and smiled. "The final task is upon you. You have a long road ahead. Wielder of Zantestuken, Angel of Thunder... you and your lover must kill the remaining Cetra. How she is killed doesn't matter. Gain the White Materia and demolish it. Nothing must stop our return." Lightning said and pushed past Cloud, aiming her gun at Aeris. She released her grip on the White Materia and ran deeper into the crypts.

Lightning angrily huffed as she stretched out her wing and flew after the Cetra faster than the eyes could see. "Damn it!" Genesis cursed and flew after her, not nearly as quick as Lightning. Cloud and the others followed the black winged angel in their pursuit of Lightning and Aeris. Aeris turned a corner and screamed as a gunshot was fired at her. She held her metal pole close to her chest as she turned a number of corners. Lightning quickly swerved past the corners and continued to fire gunshots at the Cetra. Aeris' fearful escape didn't last too long after that, as she came to a dead end. Lightning landed and held her gun out before her. "Easier than I thought." She scoffed and quickly switched the gunblade into sword mode and held it up to Aeris' pale neck. She whimpered as Lightning's murderous, aqua eyes threatened to rip her heart out and eat it herself. "Give me the White Materia and I will kill you painlessly." Lightning snarled. "I don't have it!" Aeris exclaimed. Tears rolled down her face in fear. "Liar. Give it to me!" Lightning hissed in reply. "No... Give me time! Please! I'll get you the Black Materia as well, just don't kill me now!" Aeris pleaded. Lightning pulled her gunblade away from the crying Cetra's throat and thought about Aeris' plea. "Meet me in the Forgotten Capital in thirteen days. If you aren't there with either materia, I will hunt you down and murder you brutally. I will make sure that you never see Zack in the Lifestream. Do you hear me?" Lightning asked. Aeris nodded quickly, her tears of fear still rolling down her face.

Genesis landed behind the l'Cie and held his rapier out to her. Lightning chuckled. "Genesis you poor, sad angel... or shall I say, alien." Lightning said with a smirk. "Lightning, you are too. But only half." Genesis replied. "Then why are we killing off our own kind?" Lightning asked the auburn swordsman. She turned to face him as Aeris ran past her and cried into Cloud's shoulder. "How sad, she finds comfort in her dead boyfriend's best friend. Zack would be rolling in his grave and crying for centuries if he saw you like this, drooling over his best friend. I will be doing him a favour. He may not have deserved to die, but no-one deserves to love a disloyal, back stabbing bitch like you." Lightning said. "You don't have to be like this!" Cloud shouted at the former spy. "I do. Sephiroth may be alive, but I still grieve for his death. My soul is connected to the Lifestream as the fal'Cie that branded me is there. I waited five years to see him and never found him! Never! It's tearing me apart, Cloud! What if the one you love was dead for five years and you spent that time searching for them in the Lifestream? How would you feel?" Lightning asked with pain hinting in her voice.

Genesis put his rapier down and placed his hand on her shoulder. "Lightning... he's pure evil. You never found him because you were looking for the hero he was, not the villain he has become." Genesis said sombrely. Lightning looked up at him, pain pulsing through her eyes. "That didn't matter... I just wanted to find him." Lightning replied. Vincent looked down at the ground and sighed, memories of Lucrecia that he'd rather forget flashed through his mind. "I know how you feel. Wanting to find that special someone you lost and can never find them again. I know where she is, but she's not the same... it's almost as if she's dead." Vincent said with hurt. Lightning turned to Vincent and almost smiled. "I never thought my enemy would share the same emotions that I do." Lightning replied. "Same here." Vincent agreed. "Get the Cetra out of here!" Genesis exclaimed and the party ran off into the distance, a Vincent deep in thought following not too far behind. "Hey, Chaos. When we meet again, I'll kick your ass." Lightning said with a smirk. Vincent almost laughed. "Or maybe I'll kick yours. We'll see." Vincent replied and then jogged to catch up to the others.

"What was that?" Genesis asked the white winged angel. "We just understand each other's plight. That's all." Lightning replied. "You're not leaving this crypt." Genesis said and grabbed her forearm. Lightning got out of his grip and punched him in the nose before flying off faster than his reflexes would get him up. Genesis got up and shook the dizziness away. "I guess that's why she's called Lightning." Genesis said and flew after her. Lightning stopped by a fork in the crypt and tried to decide which way would take her to the outside. Genesis came up behind her and tackled her, pinning her to the ground. "Get off of me!" she exclaimed and threw him off. She went to fly off, but Genesis grabbed her ankle and pulled her down. Lightning let out a yelp and kicked him in the face before flying off. Genesis got up again, dust covering his pale skin and took off after her again. The two angels fired spells back and forth, trying to get the other out of the air. Lightning found the exit and flew past Cloud and his party, flying off into the distance.

Genesis came out seconds later and cursed his luck. "Where could she be going?" Genesis asked himself and paced around the mansion's pavement. "The Forgotten Capital. That's where she's going. We need to get there in thirteen days or she'll hunt me down. We also need the Black Materia." Aeris replied. "But Sephiroth has gone after that." Genesis said. "He can't get it if he's alone. A life needs to be sacrificed in order to gain the Black Materia." Aeris replied. "Then, where is it?" Cloud asked. "The Temple of the Ancients." Genesis replied. "Then, let's go!" Yuffie exclaimed and ran off ahead. "Damn kid..." Cid said taking another puff of his cancer stick and stamped it out. The rest of the party and Genesis followed the Wutaian girl into the forest.


	13. Chapter 13

Lightning landed in the forest outside the remains of Fort Tamberlin. The walls were crumbling down and scorched armour covered the skeletons that littered the ground. She carefully stepped over the skeletons that had been stripped of their flesh long ago and pushed through the wooden doors. The gravel crunched under her feet as she followed the path up to the watch tower. Lightning wondered up the stairs and broke down the door to the tower. The wood splintered as she stumbled through the door. The room was musty and the air was very stuffy. Lightning wondered over to the desks and quickly shuffled through the burned papers, looking for a map of Gaia. Lightning looked around the room and finally found a map. She sighed in relief and went to take it down from the wall. She was shocked to find half the map burned off.  
"Crap!" Lightning cursed and flipped a table over.

She wondered down the stairs and walked through the endless corridors to find the central garden. She threw the doors open and walked down to the burnt grassy area and turned to the mossy and crumbling Leviathan statue and the broken water fountain. Lightning examined the statue and found a shiny object sitting where the statue's head should have been. She picked up the key and studied it closely. It was a bronze key with a pink gem in the centre. Lightning put the key in her pocket and walked towards the battle arena. She broke into the arena doors and looked around the expansive building and climbed over the debris that littered the ground.

In the distance, a mahogany door with bronze trimmings and a pink gem sitting in the middle of the door. She pulled out the key and placed it in the keyhole. She turned the key and the door opened. Lightning put the key back in her pocket and took a step into the dark hall. The hall was very tight and her wing retreated to avoid moving awkwardly through the tight space. She spotted a torch in the darkness and used a fire spell to set it alight. The darkness suddenly turned into light. Cobwebs hung from the ceiling and dust covered the ground. She walked down the dark hallway and searched for any sign of a corner or a door. After walking through the hall for what seemed like hours on end, she found a bronze door that seemed to be untouched by time. She turned the handle and the door opened easily.

Suddenly, the room behind the bronze door lit up as the torch in her hand went out. The wall was decorated with glowing thunder materia. Candelabras of the materia stood around the room and a large and extremely delicate chandelier of glowing thunder materia hung from the ceiling. The floors were made of marble and the walls were decorated with bronze trimmings and pink stones glittered all over the walls. In the centre of the room stood a pillar of marble and sitting on top of the pillar was a beautiful bronze tiara encrusted with thunder materia and diamonds. Lightning examined the tiara carefully. There was an inscription below the tiara on the marble pillar engraved on a bronze plaque. Lightning noticed that the plaque was written in Cocoon script.  
"The tiara of the destroyer belongs to you, Odin's l'Cie and lover of the Chosen One. This headpiece will heighten Ragnarok's power. Use it to your advantage. Good luck." Lightning recited.

She picked up the tiara and found a mirror hanging on the wall, framed by two candelabras of thunder materia. The electricity pulsed around the materia and created a beautiful blue glow. The mirror was framed by an antique style border made of bronze and it was decorated with pink gems that sparkled like stars. She gently placed the tiara on her head and stared at her reflection in wonder. Her wing shot out and white feathers littered the marble tiles. The tiara glittered in the light of the materia. She looked away from the mirror and looked around the room. Another door sat on the other side of the room. She wondered over to the door and opened it. The door led to the outside of the fort.

The forest was burned and barren. The ashes of the burnt trees fell down as an endless shower of lost hope. Remains of monsters and Wutai soldiers littering the dusty ground. She could hear muffled whispers in the far distance. Lightning kept her hand over the hilt of her Blazefire Saber as she cautiously crept towards the voices. She hid behind a large rock with her back up against the rock before daring to look over at the travellers.

"Shit! Fucking rocks!" Cid cursed and kicked a rock before reaching down and grasping his aching toe.  
"Shut up." Vincent replied almost emotionlessly. Genesis chuckled and Cloud rolled his eyes at the childish men. Tifa, Aeris, Yuffie and Cloud led the party. Tifa was telling the worried Aeris that everything would be alright. Aeris just shook her head and cried in protest. Yuffie reached into her pocket and pulled out the handful of materia she had with her.  
"I didn't know that Odin was in here..." she said as she put the other materia away, gazing at the one pink materia in wonder. Barret looked at the materia in wonder as the sunlight made the materia sparkle, almost seeming as if red rose petals endlessly danced inside it.  
"Why pink?" Barret asked inquisitively. Yuffie shrugged.  
"Beats me!" She exclaimed with a wide smile.  
"Because Odin is Ragnarok's Eidolon." Genesis replied.

"Huh?" Yuffie asked in reply.  
"Some of the titles she is given states that she has a relation with Odin. So he must be her Eidolon." Genesis explained.  
"What?" Yuffie asked, her confusion clearly showing in her expression. Genesis sighed and pulled out his copy of Loveless and flicked to the pages that showed the inscriptions.  
"Chosen of Odin, Wielder of Zantestuken, Odin's l'Cie. See?" Genesis asked in reply and showed her the inscriptions.  
"How can you read this?" Yuffie asked and pointed to the glyphs.  
"It's a long story." Genesis replied and sighed.  
"What's that?" Tifa asked and pointed to a young woman with long pink hair talking with a much taller blonde man in a trench coat.

Cloud and Tifa wondered up to the two people talking with each other and waited for their conversation to finish.  
"We have to find Claire and warn her!" the woman in pink hair exclaimed. The man sighed and placed his hand on her shoulder.  
"She's tough. She'll be fine." The man replied and kissed her cheek.  
"She has to know! I don't want her to suffer!" The woman exclaimed in protest.  
"I don't either, but..." the man said before turning to find Cloud and Tifa staring at them.  
"Oh, a SOLDIER operative! Have you seen my sister?" the woman asked, her voice sounding almost fearful.  
"I don't work for SOLDIER. But one of our friends did." Cloud replied.  
"Genesis!" Tifa exclaimed, her voice reverberating thought the desolate forest. The black winged angel sauntered over to Cloud and Tifa before crossing his arms.

"What?" he asked.  
"Genesis! Good to see you again!" The man said and patted Genesis on the arm.  
"Good to see you too Snow, Serah. What brings you two out of the Lifestream?" Genesis asked.  
"I'm looking for Claire. She's in terrible danger. I need to warn her." Serah replied.  
"I'm telling you, she'll be alright. She has her Eidolon and her weapon. She even still has the knife, Serah. She'll be fine. She wasn't trained in the military to die." Snow said.  
"Snow! I know something is wrong! She's the only family I have left!" Serah exclaimed.  
"Serah... she's made it this far. She'll be fine." Snow protested and gave Serah a hug. Tears rushed down her face as she hoped that her sister was still alive.  
"You can join us if you want." Cloud suggested.  
"Why not? We could use a little company!" Snow replied with a broad smile.

Anger flared up within Lightning. She couldn't believe that her sister had sided with her enemy. She flew out from behind her hiding spot and slammed the hilt of her Blazefire Saber into Cloud's head. Lightning switched paradigms to Ravager and battered Cloud and Tifa with a barrage of Thunder spells. Tifa and Cloud fell to the ground and struggled to get themselves up again.  
"Claire!" Serah exclaimed and ran up to her sister. Serah tried to hug Lightning, but the older sister pushed her younger sibling away.  
"Claire! I'm glad you're ok!" She exclaimed and went to hug her sister again, before she was pushed away again. Snow gave Serah a hug and stared Lightning down.  
"How could you do that to your sister?" Snow asked, shaking his head as he spoke.

"How could you side with my enemies?" Lightning exclaimed in reply.  
"What?" Snow asked in confusion. Genesis sighed and nodded.  
"We are her enemies. We are out to kill both her and Sephiroth." Genesis replied.  
"He's alive?" Lightning asked with a glint of hope igniting in her eyes.  
"Yeah, and terrorising Gaia." Cloud replied as he and Tifa helped each other off of the ground. Lightning stormed up to Cloud and punched him in the jaw. A bone crunching smack filled the air as Cloud crumpled to the ground. Genesis held his rapier up to her neck and she snarled.  
"Claire! Be careful!" Serah exclaimed.  
"You used to be his friend. What went wrong? What got between you two?" Lightning asked the auburn warrior. Genesis sighed and put his weapon down.  
"I don't know myself. I wanted to see if he was loyal to me, and look how disloyal I am to him. I'm a terrible friend. Being locked up for five years made me realise that." Genesis replied. Lightning crossed her arms and took a few steps towards Snow and Serah before turning and locking her gaze with Vincent's.

Lightning drew her Blazefire Saber and held it up to Vincent in challenge.  
"Don't! You'll be killed!" Serah exclaimed.  
"I'll be fine. Snow, get her out of here." Lightning commanded, her eyes never leaving Vincent's.  
"Yes ma'am." He replied and they faded before returning to the Lifestream.  
"That's it! I'm getting you out of here!" Genesis exclaimed and wrapped his arms around Lightning's waist.  
"What the hell are you doing?" She hissed at him as he flew off.  
"Genesis, you traitor!" Cloud exclaimed at the fleeting angel.  
"Some things are worth destroying." Genesis replied and headed towards a large crater.

As he dropped to the ground, Lightning grabbed the collar of his leather coat and looked ready to rip his throat out.  
"What the hell are you thinking?" She exclaimed, her aqua eyes emitting the fury burning inside of her.  
"Be quiet!" Genesis hissed in reply. The hiss of metal being scraped against stone echoed through the cave. Lightning released the angel and drew her Blazefire Saber as Genesis pulled out his rapier.


	14. Chapter 14

The hiss became louder as a shadow began to form on the dark stone walls. Lightning's adrenaline pulsed through her veins as she tried to keep her shallow breaths quiet. Genesis studied the shadow and tried to make out their adversary in advance. Suddenly, the hiss stopped and a long, sleek blade pierced the shadows, pointing itself at Lightning. The wielder stepped out of the shadows and exposed themself.  
"Sephiroth?" Genesis asked.  
"That's not Sephiroth." Lightning replied and held her weapon out to the swordsman. The being laughed. Lightning shivered as the laugh was so much like Sephiroth's. The figure turned around and began to wander back into the cave.  
"Follow me." He said and the two one-winged angels followed him into the cave.

As they traversed further, the being with Sephiroth's form morphed into that of a female alien warrior, wielding an imitation of Masamune. In the low light, her skin was a pale blue and her hair was as silver as Sephiroth's.  
"Who are you?" Lightning asked the being. The being turned around and gazed at the l'Cie. The alien's eyes gleamed an evil red, making it seem like the blood of the innocents she killed pulsed through her irises.  
"You know me as the conqueror of worlds. I am Jenova." She replied and led them further into the cave.  
"How did you get out of Nibelheim?" Genesis asked. Jenova laughed. Her laughter was like a ghost moaning against wind chimes blowing in the wind.  
"Easy. They put me in the Shinra building. Sephiroth commanded me to take his form and his sword. I released AVALANCHE and killed the President Shinra. After that I snuck out." Jenova replied with a chuckle.

"He's been waiting for you two. Especially you, Ragnarok." Jenova said as they continued walking into the dark cave. Water dripped from the ceiling and pools of mako swirled around, emitting the only form of light illuminating the cave. The cave smelt damp and musty, making Genesis' nose wrinkle in disgust. Their footsteps echoed through the cave as they continued on. Suddenly, the room lit up. Streams of mako flowed endlessly though the cavern, painting intricate patterns upon the stone. Orbs of materia were materialising from the lakes and streams of mako. From the ceiling, hung a beautiful array of materia, all shining with the luminosity of the stars.  
"It's beautiful." Lightning said with awe. The reflections of the materia made her eyes sparkle with delight. Genesis couldn't help but to look around and steal a few gasps of wonder. Jenova chuckled at the gobsmacked angels.  
"The planet is dying. Not by me, but by Shinra draining the mako out of the planet. Ragnarok, you will be doing Gaia a favour. Saves me from trying to destroy this fucking hellhole." Jenova uttered before ushering them onwards.

The gravel crushed under their feet as they continued on through the maze of mako and materia. Their silence was only disturbed by their shallow breathing and their footsteps crunching the gravel beneath their feet.  
"Not too far to go now." Jenova said, breaking the silence that hung over the three of them. The mako streams followed them down the cavernous corridor.  
"So, what's the plan?" Lightning asked.  
"Plan for what?" Jenova asked in reply.  
"Destroying Gaia." Lightning replied.  
"You will have to work that out with Sephiroth himself. Genesis and I can only offer suggestions at the moment. But, the best way to do it would be to use the Black Materia to summon Meteor and then have Ragnarok slam it into the Planet." Jenova replied.  
"Sounds easy enough." Lightning said with a nod.  
"Still, you would have to get past the Planet's weapons. Chaos included." Genesis replied. The silence gripped the group again as they drifted down the corridor.

Suddenly, the corridor expanded into another cavern. Mako flowed along its path around the edge of the cavern and met again at a cocoon of mako.  
"He's just up here. He should be ready now." Jenova replied and gestured towards the cocoon. Lightning took a step forward and so did Genesis. Jenova held him back and shook her head.  
"Let her release him. He is her servant after all." Jenova said.  
"Wait, servant? Not ally?" Genesis asked.  
"Not ally, servant. She is the destroyer and he succumbed to the darkness, making him her servant." Jenova replied.  
"Right..." Genesis replied with a nod and they stared at the cocoon of mako in wonder.

Her footsteps echoed as she slowly walked through the cavern. She stopped just before the cocoon and sighed. His features were as angelic as ever, he almost didn't seem real. Lightning wanted to shake herself awake and tell herself this was all a magnificent dream, she didn't truly believe that Sephiroth was alive, not since the incident five years ago. Lightning took another step towards the cocoon and placed her hands on the mako. The liquid felt cool against her hand and a tingling sensation ran up her arm and tickled her shoulders.  
"Sephiroth..." Lightning uttered before setting her forehead up against the mako. Jenova and Genesis walked up to Lightning and Jenova placed her hand on Lightning's shoulder.  
"Grab his hand and pull him out." Jenova instructed. Lightning took a deep breath in and slid her hand into the mako. The mako was cool against her skin as she grasped Sephiroth's hand and gently tugged it. Lightning wrapped her arms around his waist as she sat on the ground and caressed Sephiroth's face in her hands.

Sephiroth's perfectly chiselled body shimmered in the light of the mako rivers. She noticed the large black angel wing protruding from his right shoulder. Lightning smiled and kissed his forehead. Sephiroth stirred slightly. She sighed with relief and kissed his chest before working her lips up his neck to his cheek. His eyes slowly opened and exposed his bright green cat like eyes that always made Lightning's heart melt.  
"Lightning?" Sephiroth asked wearily.  
"Sephiroth!" Lightning exclaimed. She pressed her lips up against his and gently brushed her tongue up against his. Sephiroth sighed and gently placed his hand on the back of her neck before removing his lips from hers and he began to kiss her neck. Lightning sighed heavily as Sephiroth's lips moved down from the top of her neck and down to her collarbone.  
"Sephiroth... I'm glad you're ok." Lightning said and kissed his head.  
"I love you, Lightning." Sephiroth said and wrapped his arms around Lightning's waist.  
"I love you too, Sephiroth." Lightning replied and kissed his chest whilst running her hands down his body and lovingly stroked his abs. Sephiroth pressed his lips up against Lightning's lips again and as their lips continuously locked and unlocked, his hands roamed her body.

"Um, we're still here you know..." Genesis said with a smile that painted the romantic atmosphere with the awkwardness he felt at the moment. Lightning and Sephiroth pulled away to stare at Genesis. Jenova laughed as she whacked Genesis over the back of the head.  
"Nice." Lightning said with a snarl. Sephiroth laughed and shook his head.  
"Now you know how I felt when I had to witness you and Angeal kiss." Sephiroth replied. Lightning looked at Sephiroth in confusion.  
"Long story." Sephiroth said and kissed Lightning's cheek.  
"I missed you." Lightning said.  
"I missed you too." Sephiroth replied and kissed Lightning briefly before pulling away.

"We need to meet that idiot Cloud and his party at the Forgotten Capital in eleven days." Lightning said.  
"Lightning told the Cetra to get the Black Materia as well as the white so you can complete the last task with ease and destroy the Planet in on time." Genesis replied.  
"How do I know you aren't working with them?" Sephiroth asked.  
"Because I would have murdered everyone in this room by now." Genesis replied.  
"Good point." Sephiroth said with a nod.  
"So, what's the plan?" Lightning asked. She helped her lover up and he held her waist tightly.  
"Jenova, take my form and go with Genesis to distract AVALANCHE. It will give us time to learn to how to control Ragnarok properly and we will meet them there and kill the Cetra." Sephiroth replied.  
"Sounds good." Genesis said. Jenova took Sephiroth's form and held her imitation Masamune before walking off. Genesis looked at the alien in wonder. She turned around and grabbed Genesis by the ear before dragging him out of the cavern.  
"Now, how do we control Ragnarok?" Sephiroth asked.  
"I thought you were supposed to know that!" Lightning replied.  
"Ok, how did you turn into Ragnarok before?" Sephiroth asked.  
"Pure anger, times when I felt threatened, confused and upset." Lightning replied.  
"Then we'll learn to harness your inner emotions." Sephiroth replied with a smile.


	15. Chapter 15

_Seven days later_

Aeris clung to her pole and followed Cloud closely.  
"How long until we find the temple?" Yuffie asked, her feet hurting from all the walking.  
"Who knows? Genesis knew where we had to go and he abandoned us." Tifa replied and Yuffie groaned. Vincent huffed angrily and Red XIII shook his head.  
"Aeris knows the way, doesn't she?" Cid asked, he stomped out the cigarette he had in his mouth before power walking up to catch up to the others.  
"Yeah, but I don't want to leave Cloud's side." She replied with fear coating her voice like icing does a cake. Cloud stopped in his tracks and looked into the distance. Aeris bumped into Cloud and almost toppled over. Cloud grabbed her hand and kept her from falling.  
"Thank you." She replied and kissed Cloud's cheek. Tifa shook her head angrily and crossed her arms over her chest. Yuffie laughed at Tifa's childish response. The moon was full and hung high in the night's sky, surrounded by the little lights of the night.

The party turned the corner and Aeris smiled.  
"It's the temple!" She exclaimed with delight.  
"We only have three days left to get to the Forgotten Capital. There's not enough time to get the White Materia." Red XIII replied.  
"Don't be such a sour puss! We made it!" Cat Sith exclaimed. Red XIII grunted. Barret laughed at the two creatures. Suddenly, two male figures stood before the entrance of the temple.  
"Goddamn it!" Cid cursed and pulled out a cigarette before putting it in his mouth and lighting it. The figures walked up to the party and Aeris yelped before hiding behind Cloud. Cloud drew his Buster Sword and grunted.  
"Genesis! Sephiroth! What are you doing here?" Cloud asked in exclamation.  
"Just checking up." Genesis replied with a smirk.  
"And for a little break..." Sephiroth replied with a laugh before wrapping his arms around Genesis' waist and pulling him closer. Genesis wore an expression of pure shock as Sephiroth viciously pressed his lips up against Genesis'. Genesis fumbled with Sephiroth's coat and slowly worked the coat off of his pale body before running the palms of his gloved hands over the surface of Sephiroth's unscathed body. Their lips continuously locked and unlocked as Sephiroth's hands tousled Genesis' auburn hair.

The party watched the ex-SOLDIERs lock lips.  
"What happened to Ragnarok?" Vincent asked. Sephiroth released his lips from Genesis' and turned towards the ex-Turk.  
"Nothing. She's waiting at the Forgotten Capital." Sephiroth replied. Cloud tightened his grip on his sword and charged at the angels. They stepped out of the way in time for Cloud to trip over Genesis' foot. Cloud hit the ground with a thump and let go of his sword. Sephiroth picked it up and gazed at it.  
"Angeal's Buster Sword... I never thought I'd see it again..." Sephiroth replied and tossed the blade out of Cloud's reach. Sephiroth picked Cloud up by his collar and slammed him up against the trunk of a nearby tree.

He tore the clothes off of Cloud's torso and ran his fingernails down Cloud's pale body before hissing with contentment. Cloud closed his eyes and braced for the worst as Sephiroth harshly bit his neck and began kissing his chest.  
"As angels of darkness, Genesis and I give in to temptation's demands... You'd be wise to do the same..." Sephiroth said with a purr and continued to kiss Cloud's body. Genesis laughed.  
"Feels good, doesn't it?" Genesis mocked before running his tongue across Cloud's cheek. The rest of the party just stared in shock as the two black feathered angels spread their saliva around every inch of Cloud's bare skin. The swordsman sighed and nodded.  
"Yeah... feels good... feels extremely good..." Cloud replied with a quiet sigh. He pushed the angels off of his body and removed the clothing covering Genesis' torso. Cloud and Genesis looked at Sephiroth and then nodded to each other before pinning the silver haired man to the tree and covering his perfectly toned body with kisses, bite marks and saliva. Sephiroth sighed deeply as Cloud kissed his neck. The party looked at each other before wandering into the temple.  
"Cloud? You coming?" Vincent asked.  
"Go without me!" Cloud instructed and continued to shower Sephiroth's body with kisses. Vincent looked up at the sky and shook his head before slinging Cloud over his shoulder and carrying him into the temple. The two angels gave Cloud flirty waves and winks as he was carried into the crumbling Temple of the Ancients.

Sephiroth morphed into the blue skinned alien and she flicked her silvery hair behind her shoulders.  
"I told you tempting people was going to be fun." Jenova said with a chuckle. Genesis folded his arms across his bare chest and laughed.  
"Yes, you were right. Did you see Cloud's face? That was funny as!" Genesis replied. "Besides, we're not disobeying orders. We were told to distract AVALANCHE and that's what we've been doing for the past five days." Jenova said.  
"Getting that guy to kidnap Tifa was genius. I have never seen a man resort to cross-dressing in order to save their friend." Genesis replied. Jenova laughed again and slapped Genesis on the back. A red handprint appeared on his pasty flesh seconds later.  
"Three days until we go to the lands of wealth..." Genesis said with a contented smirk. He tried to imagine what kind of worlds Cocoon and Gran Pulse would be like. Jenova laughed again and he lost the beautiful image of his dreamt up paradise.  
"I don't think it would be what you're thinking. I have spent far too long on this goddamn planet. I'm just glad someone is going to destroy it!" Jenova exclaimed.

Genesis laughed evilly and then picked up his crimson rapier. Jenova morphed into Sephiroth's form and summoned her imitation Masamune before the two of them nodded to each other and sauntered into the temple.  
"You know the plan, yes?" Jenova asked.  
"Of course. Seduce the brawler and the ninja. I'll take the brawler." Genesis said with a cheeky smile before strutting off.  
"Hm... and I'll take the ninja." She replied before marching in the opposite direction.

"We should split up and look for the materia." Tifa suggested.  
"I agree with Tifa. One group is less efficient than nine people. Face facts, it's quicker that way because we can cover more ground." Yuffie replied. Tifa gave Yuffie an appreciative nod before the two women gave each other a high five.  
"Shit... Stairs are fucking everywhere..." Cid cursed and lit another cancer stick. He took a puff before heading off in a completely different direction. Cloud and Aeris wandered off in another direction as did Barret, Red XIII, Cat Sith, Yuffie, Vincent and Tifa.

Yuffie bounded down the hallway, chanting the word 'materia' over and over again like a woman possessed. She passed a hall and then she stopped and looked down the hall she passed. A large pile of materia sat at the end of the hall. Yuffie's eyes glistened with delight. She ran to the materia and jumped onto the pile. She laughed as she stuffed her pockets with the materia she had just found.  
"I'm glad you liked my little present..." a haunted voice said with a chuckle.  
"Sephiroth! Where are you?" Yuffie exclaimed and looked around the room with her large shuriken in her hand. Sephiroth snuck up behind her and took the shuriken out of her hand before wrapping his arm around her waist and kissing her neck. He threw the shuriken to the side and it lodged itself into the wall.  
"Get off of me!" Yuffie shouted and thrashed about, trying to get out of Sephiroth's iron grip. He laughed evilly.

"You gave in to one type of temptation, so why not try another?" Sephiroth asked with a chuckle. Yuffie thought about what Sephiroth was offering and shook her head.  
"Nope. Materia is fine with me!" she exclaimed and picked up a blue materia before staring at it in awe.  
"Come on, you know he only likes women with experience, right?" Sephiroth asked. Yuffie couldn't believe what she was hearing.  
"It's not possible! He... he said he'd never cheat on Aeris!" Yuffie exclaimed in reply.  
"But look what he did earlier... that is cheating. And you have more than just Aeris to worry about... Tifa likes him too. You have stiff competition and a guy like him only wants a girl who can make him sigh." Sephiroth replied. Yuffie looked at the ground with hurt.  
"And, if you can make me of all people sigh, then doing Cloud should be easier than killing a fly." Sephiroth added and kissed her neck whilst running his hands over her chest.  
"Would you help me get Cloud?" Yuffie asked. Sephiroth chuckled and sat her on his lap before wrapping both arms around her waist.  
"Only if you do something for me in return." Sephiroth replied.  
"Anything! You can have anything!" Yuffie said blindly. Sephiroth smirked and then kissed her cheek.  
"After Aeris dies, Cloud will be wanting comfort. That is your chance to get in first and make sure he wants you instead. So, you don't try and stop me from killing Aeris. That is all I ask. Let me kill Aeris and your troubles will fade away." Sephiroth said.  
"Deal!" Yuffie exclaimed and wrapped her arms around Sephiroth's neck. She reached over to his ear and gently nipped it.

Sephiroth chuckled as her fingers lightly tickled the back of his neck.  
"Hold it." Sephiroth commanded and Yuffie pulled away.  
"Aw... Is this some kind of torture?" Yuffie asked with a frown. Sephiroth released his grip on her waist and sat back. Yuffie looked at the silver haired swordsman with confusion.  
"Sit on me." He commanded.  
"But I am sitting on you." Yuffie replied. Sephiroth groaned and shook his head. He gently pulled her leg to one side and wrapped it around his back.  
"Oh, I get it." she said with a nod and wrapped her other leg around his back before sitting on his crotch.  
"Better." he replied with a cheeky smirk. Yuffie moved his hair away from his neck and began to smother his skin with saliva. Sephiroth chuckled as her licks slowly transitioned to kisses.  
"Yuffie, you have to be rough every now and again. It adds variety. Come on, do you want Cloud to think you are an inexperienced little runt?" Sephiroth asked.  
"No way!" Yuffie exclaimed and pushed Sephiroth down onto the materia and began to bite his ear. He laughed as Yuffie's fingers traced his abdominals.  
"What's so funny?" Yuffie asked as she laid her head against his chest.  
"That tickles..." he replied with a chuckle. Yuffie ran her hands up his abs and began to bite at his neck.

Sephiroth bit his lip as he tried to keep his breaths of pleasure contained within his body.  
"Come on! Sigh already, damn it!" Yuffie exclaimed as she bit his nipple.  
"Where's the fun in that?" he chuckled in reply. She pulled her mouth away from his body and sat on his torso with her back towards him. She dug into his pants and tried to grope him.  
"That's enough!" he exclaimed and pushed her into the pile of materia before taking the shuriken from the wall and dropping it on the floor. Yuffie got up, picked up her weapon and tackled Sephiroth.  
"You're not going anywhere mister!" she shouted and kissed his chest.

Sephiroth pushed her off again before morphing into her true form.  
"I'm not Sephiroth, damn it!" Jenova exclaimed as she threw her arms up in the air. Yuffie wore an expression of pure shock and confusion.  
"Wait, I've just been smooching Jenova?" Yuffie asked the alien.  
"Yes, but I was right about the tips. Cloud does like it rough." Jenova replied.  
"How do you know that?" Yuffie asked, pointing an edge of her weapon at Jenova.  
"Sephiroth told me. He can reach into the mind of those with Jenova cells and read their thoughts and potentially control them and break their mind in the process. So, yeah. Cloud does like it rough." Jenova replied with a chuckle.  
"So, what's this new world you and Genesis are talking about?" Yuffie asked.  
"It's not new, it was destroyed over five hundred years ago. Gaia is a sacrifice so that we can all live in that fallen world." Jenova replied.  
"Huh... Who knew?" Yuffie asked and shrugged her shoulders.  
"You wouldn't know where the Black Materia is in this place, would you?" Yuffie asked.  
"No. I don't." Jenova replied.  
"Can you tell me more about Cloud?" Yuffie asked with a hopeful smile as she sat down on the colourful orbs.  
"Why not? He's going to be crushed by Aeris' death anyways..." Jenova replied as she sat next to Yuffie.

Tifa walked through the corridors, trying to look for the Black Materia. Genesis whacked her on the back of her head and pulled her into a dark room. The icy fingers of darkness swept over Tifa's forehead as she startled herself awake. She looked around and couldn't see anything in front of her. Genesis clicked his fingers and the torches flickered to life, blue flames dancing in their contained holders. Four solid granite walls surrounded her and stretched out to reach the heavens, leaving the open ceiling to let the shimmering stars send their light down the shaft and place its cold hands over Tifa's exposed flesh. She looked around the room a bit more. It was basically empty, save for the 1920's lounge she lay on. If she screamed there and then, her voice would echo through the structure before leaving the open roof as a gentle whisper.

Genesis silently walked over to the lounge and ran his gloved hand over the side of her face before moving over her lips, down her neck and harshly grabbing her breast. Tifa sighed with surprise and deep pleasure as his hand gently massaged her body. As his hands became gentler and gentler, Tifa pressed her back against the red velvet cushions as Genesis sat on her stomach and pressed his lips up against hers. As his hand left her torso to slide down her leg, he slowly pushed his tongue into her mouth. She bit his tongue gently as his hand caressed her leg. Genesis pulled away and his black feathered wing brushed up against her cheek before spreading out beside him. Tifa opened her mouth to speak, but Genesis put his finger up against her lips.  
"Ssh... don't say anything. Just hear me out. If you let Sephiroth kill Aeris, your childhood crush will be available for the taking. But little miss Yuffie likes him too. You don't want to lose him twice, do you?" Genesis asked. Tifa shook her head, his finger still firmly pressed up against her lips.  
"And in order to get back what was rightfully yours in the first place, you will not stop Sephiroth from killing Aeris. Promise me you won't stop Sephiroth killing Aeris. Will you do that for me so you can get your happily ever after?" Genesis asked. Tifa nodded before taking Genesis' hands in her own and removing his gloves.

Genesis placed his hands on her hips and leaned against her chest. Suddenly, the ground began to shake and the walls started to crumble. Genesis took Tifa's hand and pulled her out of the shrinking temple.  
"What are we going to do?" She asked with haste. Genesis wrapped his arms around her waist and flew out of the temple before dropping her with the rest of the party and hiding in the trees with Jenova on the branch opposite.

"Got the materia!" Yuffie exclaimed with an excited dance.  
"Where's Cat Sith?" Tifa asked. Cloud held up a dark orb and lifted it into the light.  
"In here." He replied with a certain sorrow. The party bowed their heads in respects to their comrade.  
"We have to get to the Forgotten Capital before Ragnarok gets impatient." Aeris said. The party nodded and they headed off into the night, searching for the city of the Cetra.


	16. Chapter 16

_One day later..._

Aeris looked down at her pocket and clutched the metal pole for dear life. She knelt down on the cool tiles of the open temple and grasped the White Materia between her shaking hands before beginning to pray.  
"Look who we have here..." Sephiroth said with a laugh before grabbing her arm and pulling her up. Aeris dropped her staff and hoped that nothing bad would happen to her. Lightning sauntered up to Aeris and crossed her arms.  
"Where are the Materia you promised me?" she asked. It was clear that her patience was already wearing thin. Aeris threw the Black Materia at the l'Cie. She caught it and began to inspect the dark orb.  
"The White one, if you please." Lightning said and held her hand out. Aeris handed her the White Materia. Lightning held it up to the light and smirked.  
"Kill her." Lightning commanded and turned away from the scene.

Sephiroth chuckled.  
"With pleasure..." he replied. He kicked Aeris down to the ground and summoned Masamune before stabbing the blade through her stomach. Aeris screamed as Sephiroth pulled the blade out and let her drop to the ground, lifeless like a plank. Lightning winced as her blood slowly leaked out onto the floor. Sephiroth wrapped his arm around her waist and kissed her cheek.  
"What's wrong?" he asked, clearly seeing the sorrow hidden in her blue eyes.  
"I don't think I should do this." Lightning replied. Sephiroth held her chin and gently turned her face towards his. Her ice blue eyes met his green cat like ones.  
"You don't know anybody here. Your friends and family are dead. You have a chance to bring them back. Why not take it?" Sephiroth asked her. She pulled her face away from his and sighed.  
"I don't know. I doesn't feel right." Lightning replied. Sephiroth took the Black Materia out of her hand and kissed her neck.  
"You should do it. Do it for your family and friends. Do it. We're almost done." he whispered in her ear before wrapping his arms around her stomach and repeatedly kissing her neck.

She looked at the white orb sitting on her palm and nodded. She threw the Materia onto the ground and shot it with her Blazefire Pistol. The shards of light flew away in different directions as she put the gun back in its sheath. Sephiroth grasped the Black Materia tightly and prepaid to summon Meteor. The heavens began to swirl with darkness as a large rock began to descend from the sky.  
"Ragnarok. It's time." Sephiroth said with a nod. Lightning returned the nod and a stabbing pain attacked her chest. She felt her body begin to morph into the towering destroyer of worlds.

The Pulsian beast stood at a height that would dwarf even the Shinra building. She slammed her fist down onto the falling meteor and it wedged itself into the planet. Screams from millions of civilians were even heard from Ragnarok's height. Genesis and Jenova stood next to Sephiroth and watched the destruction of Gaia unfold. The weapons of the planet began to arise and search for the attacker. Ragnarok knocked them out of the sky with ease and stamped on the meteor, plunging it into the centre of Gaia. The Lifestream broke out of the holds of the planet and Ragnarok tore it in two. Her world began to spin as the beast slowly morphed back into the pink haired l'Cie. The planet broke apart and darkness took over.

The heat of the Fal'Cie Phoenix beat down on the faces of the one winged angels. Genesis was the first to awake. He sat up and his gaze fell on his childhood friend passed out on the sand.  
"Angeal!" Genesis exclaimed and slapped him on the cheek before laughing. Angeal groaned and rubbed his cheek as he sat up and looked around.  
"Where are we?" he asked.  
"This is Cocoon! She did it! She really did it!" Genesis exclaimed in reply and ran over to the slumbering lovers. Angeal shook his head and followed his auburn friend across the beach.  
"Sephiroth... Never thought I'd see you passed out." Angeal said with a laugh. The former general's eyes slowly fluttered open to find Genesis and Angeal staring down at him. He slowly sat up and looked down at Lightning, who still was unconscious. Sephiroth gently ran his fingers down the side of her face and kissed her cheek tenderly. Angeal blinked and shook his head.  
"I never thought I'd see Sephiroth in love either..." he said with a blank expression. Sephiroth laughed as Lightning's eyes opened gradually. She looked up into Sephiroth's eyes and smiled.  
"Welcome home." Sephiroth said and kissed her forehead.

Serah and Snow headed out onto the beach to see what the fuss was about.  
"Lightning!" Serah exclaimed and jumped down onto the sand before hugging her sister. Lightning laughed and hugged her sister back. Snow slapped Sephiroth on the back and the silver haired angel sent him an unamused glare.  
"Thanks for taking care of my sister for me." Snow said with a smirk.  
"I'm not your sister!" Lighting hissed and the rest of the group laughed.  
"Yeah... But soon, you will be." Snow replied with a chuckle. The rest of the l'Cie met up with four one winged angels. Then, the people of Cocoon slowly began to rebuild their lives as order was restored to Cocoon.


End file.
